Big Retail Chains Close Doors

Retailers were hoping against hope that door-busting sales could salvage the holiday shopping season. It didn't happen. The amount of money spent at the nation's retailers from Nov. 1 through Christmas Eve was down 5.5 percent to 8 percent, compared to last year, according to MasterCard SpendingPulse, which tracks retail sales for all forms of payment, including check, cash and credit card. The recession and factors like bad weather over the last two weeks contributed to the slowest retail...Full Story