A last minute Christmas spending surge is set to hit retailers this week, with one in 10 Australian men set to leave their festive shopping until today.
The Australian Retailers Association said that many men will leave their gift shopping to Christmas Eve, with an estimated $12 billion set to be spent throughout the entire holiday period.
The US looks like it could fall over its so-called ‘fiscal cliff’ after a breakdown in a proposed agreement between lawmakers.
The Republican party voted against a proposed ‘plan B’ that would see taxes rise for people earning over $1 million. The lack of a deal is expected to result in a weakening of the Australian dollar.
A minimalist high-tech yacht commissioned by late Apple founder Steve Jobs has become engulfed in a bitter dispute over an unpaid bill.
Designer Philippe Starck claims that Jobs’ heirs still owe him three million euros for the project, with the yacht, called Venus, impounded by debt collectors.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 120.72 points, or 0.91%, to 13,191.00. The Australian dollar was down to US104.47 cents.
