Consumer Affairs & Relations

New York City -- A report released Wednesday by the International Council of Shopping Centers found that a last-minute shopping surge gave merchants a solid lift during the final week before Christmas.

According to the ICSC-Goldman Sachs Weekly Chain Store Sales Index, same-store sales rose 0.9% for the week ended Saturday compared with the previous week. That is also up 3.4% from the week before and up 4.5% over the same period a year ago.

Kate Berg has been name president of Collective Bias, the rapidly growing social shopper marketing firm based in Bentonville, Ark. Berg will focus on organizational development at the firm which has grown to more than 30 employees in the roughly two years since it was founded and split her time between Bentonville and New York where an expanding roster of clients include Meredith Corp. and the Duane Reade drug chain.

Enfamil Newborn baby formula was quickly pulled from shelves at 3,000 Walmart stores earlier this week following the death of an infant in Missouri, the Associated Press reported.

Washington, D.C. -- A report released Friday by the Commerce Department showed that U.S. consumer spending edged up 0.1% in November, less than forecast and reflecting an economy that continues to struggle.

Incomes also grew 0.1% in November, the weakest in three months, after a 0.4% rise in October. The median estimate for spending in a Bloomberg News survey of economists called for a 0.3% advance.

Walmart and the Walmart Foundation give away so much money it is hard to keep track of it all and this was certainly evident during the holiday season.

On Thursday, the company announced another round of grants totaling $200,000 to 10 nonprofits groups as part of its “12 Days of Giving” Facebook campaign. Those grants mark the culmination of an innovating corporate giving campaign that integrated social media and resulted in a total of $1.5 million being awarded to 145 organizations in all 50 states, Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico.

In cultural commentary about the American economy, one company at a time always seems to be the goat. Everything it does is interpreted as evil, according to a recent column by Bloomberg’s Michael Kinsley.

Washington, D.C. -- The National Retail Federation said it was pleased with the decision by federal regulators to allow truck drivers to continue driving 11 hours a day, but expressed concern over a new requirement for longer weekly breaks.

Stein Mart released restated third-quarter results Friday that showed an upwardly revised loss that wasn’t quite as bad as originally feared.