NEW YORK (AP) — Shoppers unexpectedly paused their spending in December from November, closing out the holiday shopping season and the year on a lackluster tone. The report, issued by the Commerce Department on Tuesday, surprised economists who were looking for growth despite mounting ...

CLEVELAND (AP) — Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. on Monday reported a loss of $243 million in its fourth quarter. On a per-share basis, the Cleveland-based company, which operates a coke plant in Warren, said it had a loss of 44 cents. Losses, adjusted for nonrecurring costs and to account for ...

Staff report January’s snow-covered deep freeze stifled sales in the Greater Cleveland Automobile Dealers’ Association’s 21-county area. Despite the conditions, the Mahoning Valley plowed through with positive gains. The association reported last week that new vehicle sales for the ...

Staff report Gas prices are 8 cents higher in Northeast Ohio this week at $2.847 per gallon, according to AAA East Central’s Gas Price Report released Monday. The month of February is bringing slightly higher gas prices as the national average for a gallon of regular is up 3 cents from ...

NEW YORK (AP) — Tax filing season is underway, and the IRS expects 164 million people will file returns by April 15. The average refund last year was $3,167. This year, analysts have projected it could be $1,000 higher, thanks to changes in tax law. More than 165 million individual income ...

WASHINGTON (AP) — Higher-income Americans and those with college degrees have ramped up their spending more quickly in the past three years than other consumers, according to new data released Tuesday, evidence of worsening inequality that may explain some of the growing pessimism about the ...