Retail hiring slump lingers

It's unlikely that teenagers, college students home for the holidays or Michigan's unemployed will have much luck snagging a job folding shirts or stocking shelves this holiday season. - 11/07/2009

Cutting 800 jobs will help Michigan, Pulte says

Bloomfield Hills-based Pulte Homes Inc. says its plan to cut 800 jobs will actually benefit Michigan. - 11/07/2009

Business briefs

Bank regulators seized and sold Detroit's Home Federal Savings Bank on Friday night, arranging for Liberty Bank and Trust Co. of New Orleans to assume all of the deposits. Home Federal had two branches, and both will reopen during their normal business hours as branches of Liberty Bank and Trust. An announcement from the FDIC said Home Federal depositors can access their money over the weekend by writing checks. - 11/07/2009

Home Federal Savings Bank third to fail in Michigan this year

Bank regulators seized and sold Detroit's Home Federal Savings Bank on Friday night, arranging for Liberty Bank and Trust Co. of New Orleans to assume all of the deposits. - 11/06/2009

Borders to close 200 Waldenbooks

Ann Arbor-based Borders Group Inc. will close 200 of its Waldenbooks stores nationwide, including six in Michigan, as part of an initiative to bolster the embattled bookseller. - 11/06/2009

U.S. jobless rate tops 10% for first time since 1983

Washington -- The unemployment rate has surpassed 10 percent for the first time since 1983 -- and is likely to go higher. - 11/06/2009

Game on

New 'Ratchet & Clank' sticks with winning formula

'Ratchet & Clank: A Crack in Time' and 'Forza Motorsport 3' are top games in their class among recent releases. - 11/06/2009

Business briefs

Toyota Motor Corp. returned to profit in the second quarter, winding up a better-than-expected earnings season for Japan's leading automakers. Toyota said Thursday it still expects to lose money for the full fiscal year ending March 31, 2010. But it reduced its loss forecast by more than half, to $2.15 billion from $4.9 billion. Toyota, like its Japanese rivals, benefited from "cash for clunkers" programs in many regions that stoked demand for small and fuel-efficient cars. - 11/06/2009

'eCitizenship' conference next week at Wayne State

Detroit -- A national "eCitizenship" conference on the role of online social media and democracy is coming to Michigan, hosted by Wayne State University. - 11/06/2009

Deja vu: Wal-Mart, Amazon, Target in DVD price war

New York -- First it was books. Now it's DVDs. - 11/06/2009

Local spotlight

Doctor fine-tunes LASIK practice

In June 2008, Dr. Robert Beitman gave a speech at Wayne State University on the business of high-volume LASIK surgery. - 11/05/2009

Cobo event touts wind turbine benefits

Detroit -- Rooftop and residential-scale wind turbines could play a big role in generating renewable energy for the U.S. - 11/05/2009

What you need to know if your bank fails

New York -- Dozens of banks have failed this year. What do you need to know if yours is next? - 11/05/2009

Fashion brands switch alliances

New York -- Some of fashion's best-known names are playing musical chairs. - 11/05/2009

Pulte loses $361M in 3Q, sees new home orders rise

Bloomfield Hills -- Pulte Homes Inc. lost $361.4 million in the third quarter, but with the acquisition of Centex Corp., the homebuilder's new orders increased by more than a third. - 11/05/2009

Google providing better view of personal data

Google is offering a new privacy control that will make it easier for people to see some of the information being collected about them. - 11/05/2009

• Check out Google Dashboard

House votes to speed up tougher credit card rules

Washington -- The House voted 331-92 on Wednesday to impose immediately tough new rules -- set to take effect in 2010 -- for credit card companies after complaints of increased interest rates and steep new fees. - 11/05/2009