Personal Finance

FRAMINGHAM, Mass. — April 17 is almost here, and Staples is making it easier for customers to meet the tax-filing deadline by offering free copies of tax returns and one-stop shopping on essentials such as tax-filing software and organizational products. Starting April 8 and continuing through tax-filing day on April 17, Staples Copy & Print Centers (with full service at all Staples locations) will provide savings to its customers by offering 30 pages of free tax return copies (15 double-sided sheets).

New York -- The CEO of Sears Holdings Corp., Louis D'Ambrosio, received a compensation package in 2011 whose value was put at $9.9 million, according to a proxy statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

D'Ambrosio joined the company in February 2011. He received a base salary of $931,000. His stock awards totaled $8 million and his bonus was $150,000.

YONKERS, N.Y. — After three consecutive months of improvement, the Consumer Reports Index for March slipped to 46.1, from 49.6 last month.

March's Consumer Reports Index measures overall consumer financial health and showed that the confidence of the American consumer is waning.

Further challenging consumer confidence, The Trouble Tracker Index increased slightly this month to 52.2 from 49.1 in February, and is now at its highest level since August 2011.

Yonkers, N.Y. -- After three consecutive months of improvement, the Consumer Reports Index for March slipped to 46.1, from 49.6 last month.

March's Consumer Reports Index measures overall consumer financial health and showed that the confidence of the American consumer is waning.

Further challenging consumer confidence, The Trouble Tracker Index increased slightly this month to 52.2 from 49.1 in February, and is now at its highest level since August 2011.

New York City -- Consumer confidence in February shot up from last month to the highest level since a year ago, according to The Conference Board. The group’s Consumer Confidence Index now stands at 70.8, up from a revised 61.5 in January, buoyed by consumers' more positive assessment of the job market.

Losing weight is a little like saving money. Consumers will always intend to do more of both, but then reality sets in and they tend to do neither. Retailers can count on that pattern holding true this year, which is good news because a recent study by the National Retail Federation shows those planning to save their tax refund is at an all time high.

WASHINGTON — Retailers hoping to see a boost in sales this tax season may be out of luck as more Americans this year plan to save their refunds.

The National Retail Federation's tax returns consumer survey, conducted by BIGinsight, found that 43.8% of those expecting refunds will save some of that money, up from 42.l% who said so last year and the most in the survey’s nine-year history. Two-thirds (66.2%) of tax payers are expecting a refund this year, the exact same as last year.

WASHINGTON — The National Retail Federation expressed its support for President Obama's proposal for business tax reform, and pledged to work with the White House and Congress to win passage of legislation that would significantly lower rates in order to help retailers and other businesses create jobs.

Washington, D.C. -- The National Retail Federation expressed its support for President Obama's proposal for business tax reform, and pledged to work with the White House and Congress to win passage of legislation that would significantly lower rates in order to help retailers and other businesses create jobs.

NEW CANAAN, Conn. — Not long after Deloitte released gloomy predictions for consumer spending in 2012, another firm is out with a more sunny forecast. Retail sales will increase by 5.7% in 2012, according to a new report by Customer Growth Partners, a consulting and research firm serving retailers, vendors and institutional investors.

The report, “The Great Consumer Reset/The Great Retail Reset,” finds that falling household and credit-debt levels, along with higher savings rates, are fueling consumer spending.