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WASHINGTON — Americans stepped up their spending at retailers last month in the latest sign that healthy consumer spending is driving the economy's steady growth. Retail sales rose 0.4 percent from September to October, the Commerce Department said Nov.
15, a solid increase though less than the previous month's robust 0.8 percent gain. A 1.
6 percent jump in sales at car dealers drove much of the gain. Purchases climbed 2.3 percent at electronics and appliances stores and 0.
7 percent at restaurants and bars. Though some of October's rise in retail sales reflected higher prices, it mainly indicated increased purchases. Sales in some categories fell — furniture stores, clothing outlets and drug stores, among them — though economists said that weakness likely resulted, at least in part, from last month's hurricanes.
Sales at home and garden stores rose, potentially reflecting rebuilding activity after the storms. Friday's report arrived as retailers are poised to enter the critically important holiday shopping season in less than two weeks. One cautionary note was that grocery-store sales barely rose last month, a sign that many Americans may still be struggling to adapt to food prices that are still much higher than they were three years ago.
DETROIT — General Motors is laying off about 1,000 workers worldwide, shedding costs as it tries to compete in a crowded global automobile market. The workers, mostly in white-collar jobs, were notified about the decisions Nov. 15.
The company confirmed the layoffs in a statement but gave few details. "We need to optimize for speed and excellence," GM said. "This includes operating with efficiency, ensuring we have the right team structure and focusing on our top priorities.
" GM and other automakers have been navigating an uncertain transition to electric vehicles both in the U.S. and worldwide, trying to figure out where to invest capital and how fast the switch will happen.
GM has about 150,000 employees worldwide, with the largest group at its technical center in the Detroit suburb of Warren, Mich. The company had 76,000 white-collar workers worldwide at the end of last year. LAS VEGAS — Hundreds of hotel workers at a casino near the Las Vegas Strip went on strike just before dawn Nov.
15 after a long and highly publicized fight for a new contract. The walkout at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas marks the first open-ended strike in 22 years for the 60,000-member Culinary Workers Union, which urged travelers to cancel reservations or check out and to choose a union accommodation. The company's proposal worked out to an estimated $0.
30 per year to wages over five years after deducting money for benefits, according to a CWU officials. Workers at the casino also walked off the job for 48 hours earlier this year as negotiations escalated, hoping to pressure Virgin Hotels to agree to a new five-year deal with increased wages and better benefits. Housekeepers, cocktail and food servers, porters and bellhops were among those on the picket line Friday outside the hotel-casino, which was formerly the Hard Rock Las Vegas.
TOKYO — Japan's economy eked out an annual rate of 0.9 percent growth in the July-September period as consumer spending held up, government data showed Friday. The world's fourth-largest economy grew 0.
2 percent in the fiscal second quarter, marking the second straight quarter of expansion, following 0.5 percent growth from April through June. Seasonally adjusted gross domestic product, or GDP, measures the value of a nation's products and services.
The annual rate shows how much the economy would have grown or contracted, if the quarterly rate continued for a year. MEXICO CITY — Mexico's president has lashed out at Moody's ratings service after it downgraded the the government's debt outlook to "negative." Moody's said newly approved laws in Mexico could weaken the judiciary branch and checks and balances.
It reaffirmed Mexico's Baa2 overall credit rating but said increased government debt represented a risk for Mexico. It also mentioned the possibility that the government will have to transfer more money to shore up the highly indebted state-owned oil company Pemex. President Claudia Sheinbaum said Friday that ratings agencies often have "this bias of origin" against her party's economic policies.
TORONTO — Workers at Canada's national postal service are on strike after failing to reach a negotiated agreement with Canada Post. The Canadian Union of Postal Workers said about 55,000 workers are striking, claiming little progress has been made in the bargaining process. The group issued a 72-hour work-stoppage notice earlier in the week, saying it's been asking for fair wages, safer working conditions and other improvements over nearly a year of bargaining.
The government corporation said customers will experience delays as a result of the strike. LONDON — The British economy's rebound from recession slowed down sharply in the third quarter of the year with most sectors stagnating. The Office for National Statistics said Nov.
15 that growth during the July to September period was just 0.1 percent. That was lower than the 0.
5 percent recorded in the previous three-month period and below market expectations for 0.2 percent. The statistics agency said overall output in September actually shrank, a development that is likely to fuel accusations from critics of the new Labour government that it talked the economy down in its first few weeks in power.
Treasury chief Rachel Reeves said she was "not satisfied" by the figures..
