October sales gains lift hopes for housing market
WASHINGTON (AP) -- First-time buyers seized on a tax credit, combined with low mortgage rates and falling prices, to boost home sales in October to their highest level in 2 1/2 years....

Weak dollar, home sales data carry stocks higher
NEW YORK (AP) -- Investors halted stocks' three-day losing streak Monday, sending prices higher across the market on a lower dollar and better-than-expected home sales numbers....

AP Poll: Debt stress turns shoppers into Scrooges
WASHINGTON (AP) -- A lot more Americans are feeling stressed out by debt this holiday season, raising the glum likelihood they'll behave like Scrooge rather than Santa....

Tyson Foods posts 4Q loss on beef charge
MILWAUKEE (AP) -- Tyson Foods Inc. said it made strides in the meat business this year and predicts more improvements next year, but analysts worry the company's all-important chicken business is lagging others in the industry....

Economic survey: Job losses to bottom out in 1Q
Economists expect the joblessness that has weighed down the nation's economic recovery will start to slowly abate in 2010, but they predict consumers will continue to keep a tight rein on spending, according to a new survey....

Feds find association between drywall, corrosion
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) -- The federal government said Monday that it has found a "strong association" between problematic imported Chinese drywall and corrosion of pipes and wires, a conclusion that supports complaints by thousands of homeowners over the last year....

Gas prices fall to begin busy travel week
Retail gasoline prices headed downward to begin one of the country's busiest travel weeks, with more than 33 million people expected to hit the road for the Thanksgiving holiday....

Campbell Soup earnings rise as expenses fall
MOUNT LAUREL, N.J. (AP) -- Price-conscious grocery shoppers are being choosy about what they buy to cook at home, even from the value-oriented Campbell Soup Co....

Late payments on credit cards drop in 3rd quarter
NEW YORK (AP) -- Consumers got more serious about paying down their credit card debt this summer, a time when deliquencies usually to go up....

Cadbury shares rise on report of Nestle interest
LONDON (AP) -- Shares in British chocolate maker Cadbury PLC hit their highest level in at least five years Monday on reports that another rival, Switzerland's Nestle SA, may make a takeover bid....