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Workers pack items Sunday at an Amazon fulfillment center in Tracy, Calif. Cyber Monday online sales jumped 8.5 percent over 2013.

Workers pack items Sunday at an Amazon fulfillment center in Tracy, Calif. Cyber Monday online sales jumped 8.5 percent over 2013. Noah Berger/Reuters/Landov hide caption

itoggle caption Noah Berger/Reuters/Landov

Business

Holiday Shoppers Are Filling Their Carts, Online

In-store purchases on Black Friday fell this year, but online sales have seen a big increase. Easy comparison shopping and widespread free shipping have sweetened the deal for many online shoppers.

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Each item, including boots from Guatemala, a basket from Rwanda and a soda can cuff from Kenya, are handmade. And when people buy these gifts, the profits go back to the artisans and their community.

Each item, including boots from Guatemala, a basket from Rwanda and a soda can cuff from Kenya, are handmade. And when people buy these gifts, the profits go back to the artisans and their community. Courtesy of Teysha; Indego Africa; Serrv hide caption

itoggle caption Courtesy of Teysha; Indego Africa; Serrv

Goats and Soda

For Giving Tuesday: A Guide To Gifts That Give Back

Boots from a Guatemalan village. A basket woven in Rwanda. Kenyan soda cans that became cool cuffs. Money spent on these and other items provides a better life for artisans in the developing world.

Affordable housing condo buyer Marilyn Phillips says she had to jump many hoops before purchasing her unit in D.C.'s Anacostia neighborhood.

Affordable housing condo buyer Marilyn Phillips says she had to jump many hoops before purchasing her unit in D.C.'s Anacostia neighborhood. Courtesy of Manna Inc. hide caption

itoggle caption Courtesy of Manna Inc.

Around the Nation

Bureaucratic Hoops Make D.C. Affordable Housing Units Hard To Sell WAMU-FM

This problem exists nationwide, but in the nation's capital, there are more requirements and restrictions. For example, D.C. limits the maximum resale price and makes homeowners wait before they sell.

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John Umland (left) and John Torrens gather donated cans of food in 2011 in Rohnert Park, Calif., for the group Neighbors Organized Against Hunger. Hunger advocates say a lot of nutritionally dense food like canned tuna and beans can be cheaper than processed food.

John Umland (left) and John Torrens gather donated cans of food in 2011 in Rohnert Park, Calif., for the group Neighbors Organized Against Hunger. Hunger advocates say a lot of nutritionally dense food like canned tuna and beans can be cheaper than processed food. Kent Porter/ZUMA Press/Corbis hide caption

itoggle caption Kent Porter/ZUMA Press/Corbis

The Salt

For The Next Food Drive, Go For The Canned Tuna, Not The Saltines

If you're giving nonperishables to a food pantry this year, skip the sodium-packed soups and focus on nutrient-dense foods, hunger advocates say. Some of them may be cheaper, too.

Noelle Johnson has a lengthy commute via bus and train to her job near Washington, D.C. She's been working toward her B.A. for nine years, and when she finally finishes, she says, she'll be able to afford to live closer to work.

Noelle Johnson has a lengthy commute via bus and train to her job near Washington, D.C. She's been working toward her B.A. for nine years, and when she finally finishes, she says, she'll be able to afford to live closer to work. James Clark/NPR hide caption

itoggle caption James Clark/NPR

New Boom

For Millions Of Millennials: Some College, No Degree, Lots Of Debt

Noelle Johnson has about $20,000 in student loans and is still working on her degree. Without the higher earnings a B.A. can bring, even a modest student debt load can pose a big challenge.

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Black Angus cattle in pens outside the sale barn at 44 Farms, a 3,000-acre ranch in Cameron, Texas. The cattle were on display for bidders ahead of 44 Farms' fall auction in October.

Black Angus cattle in pens outside the sale barn at 44 Farms, a 3,000-acre ranch in Cameron, Texas. The cattle were on display for bidders ahead of 44 Farms' fall auction in October. Andrew Schneider/Houston Public Media hide caption

itoggle caption Andrew Schneider/Houston Public Media

The Salt

No 'Misteak': High Beef Prices A Boon For Drought-Weary Ranchers KUHF-FM

If you've shopped for meat recently, you no doubt have noticed that beef prices are up. That may be hard on consumers, but the prices are helping ranchers purchase expensive feed and rebuild herds.

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Gary Klein is one of the lead attorneys representing homeowners in the case against Ocwen Financial.

Gary Klein is one of the lead attorneys representing homeowners in the case against Ocwen Financial. Chris Arnold/NPR hide caption

itoggle caption Chris Arnold/NPR

Business

Firm Accused Of Illegal Practices That Push Families Into Foreclosure

A class action lawsuit alleges Ocwen Financial, one of the nation's largest mortgage servicers, charges marked-up and illegal fees. The firm says it will vigorously defend itself against the claims.

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Sherri Erkel and her daughter, Asa, cook dinner in their kitchen in Iowa City, Iowa. The Erkel family is part of an EPA study measuring the amount of food wasted in U.S. homes.

Sherri Erkel and her daughter, Asa, cook dinner in their kitchen in Iowa City, Iowa. The Erkel family is part of an EPA study measuring the amount of food wasted in U.S. homes. Pat Aylward/NET News hide caption

itoggle caption Pat Aylward/NET News

The Salt

To End Food Waste, Change Needs To Begin At Home NET

The U.S. throws out 35 million tons of food each year. While many restaurants, supermarkets and processors are taking responsibility, many consumers aren't. An EPA pilot program aims to change that.

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A Malaysian flag sits on a table among other flags during a news conference at the Trans-Pacific Partnership Free Trade Agreement talks in July 2012 in San Diego. Nearly two and a half years later, the deal remains incomplete.

A Malaysian flag sits on a table among other flags during a news conference at the Trans-Pacific Partnership Free Trade Agreement talks in July 2012 in San Diego. Nearly two and a half years later, the deal remains incomplete. Gregory Bull/AP hide caption

itoggle caption Gregory Bull/AP

Business

Politics And A Food Fight Are Stalling A Major U.S.-Asia Trade Deal

Supporters of expanded trade with Asian nations hoped this week would bring completion of a major deal, but U.S. and Japanese negotiators — and Obama and congressional Republicans — still don't agree.

The airline industry is predicting more people will take to the skies this Thanksgiving than in any year since the start of the recession.

The airline industry is predicting more people will take to the skies this Thanksgiving than in any year since the start of the recession. David Goldman/AP hide caption

itoggle caption David Goldman/AP

Business

Holiday Travelers Should Expect Packed Planes, Higher Fares

With fuel prices down, profits are up. But that doesn't mean you'll be able to find cheap airfares, especially over the holidays: The airline industry is predicting its busiest season in years.

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Speaker of the House John Boehner looks on as President Barack Obama meets with bipartisian congressional leaders at the White House on the results of this week's elections.

Speaker of the House John Boehner looks on as President Barack Obama meets with bipartisian congressional leaders at the White House on the results of this week's elections. Getty Images hide caption

itoggle caption Getty Images

Commentary

A Challenge To The New Congress: Fix Stagnant Wages

The 2014 election's over, but NPR's Linda Wertheimer says we should still be talking politics, every week. Specifically, she hopes lawmakers will come together to do something about wage stagnation.

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A plane takes off over a departure board at Hartsfield-Jackson Airport in Atlanta last November. Airlines say they expect an uptick in Thanksgiving travel this year.

A plane takes off over a departure board at Hartsfield-Jackson Airport in Atlanta last November. Airlines say they expect an uptick in Thanksgiving travel this year. David Goldman/AP hide caption

itoggle caption David Goldman/AP

The Two-Way

Jet Fuel Is Down, But Not Enough For A Thanksgiving Fare War

Airlines say they expect an uptick in Thanksgiving travel. This November, jet fuel prices are down, but carriers are using the saved money to upgrade equipment and software rather than cut fares.

Fast-food workers and activists demonstrate outside a Chicago McDonald's in July in favor of a higher minimum wage. Illinois voters on Tuesday called on the state Legislature to approve a $10 minimum wage.

Fast-food workers and activists demonstrate outside a Chicago McDonald's in July in favor of a higher minimum wage. Illinois voters on Tuesday called on the state Legislature to approve a $10 minimum wage. Scott Olson/Getty Images hide caption

itoggle caption Scott Olson/Getty Images

Business

Thumbs Up For Higher Minimum Wages, And For Marijuana Industry

Voters in Alaska, Arkansas, Nebraska and South Dakota overwhelmingly approved minimum-wage hikes. Illinois voters approved a nonbinding wage-hike referendum. Recreational pot was approved in Oregon.

One proposed solution for New England's energy price spike problem: Importing more liquefied natural gas and feeding it into the pipeline network on the other side of the region's bottleneck.

One proposed solution for New England's energy price spike problem: Importing more liquefied natural gas and feeding it into the pipeline network on the other side of the region's bottleneck. Sam Evans-Brown/New Hampshire Public Radio hide caption

itoggle caption Sam Evans-Brown/New Hampshire Public Radio

Energy

New England Electricity Prices Spike As Gas Pipelines Lag NHPR

Consumers in the region are in for a shock this winter. Electricity rates there are set to jump as much as 50 percent for some customers as New England awaits the construction of more gas pipelines.

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A customer makes a purchase using Apple Pay on her iPhone 6 at a Walgreens store in Times Square last Monday. The mobile payment service has now been blocked by CVS and Rite Aid.

A customer makes a purchase using Apple Pay on her iPhone 6 at a Walgreens store in Times Square last Monday. The mobile payment service has now been blocked by CVS and Rite Aid. John Minchillo/AP Images for MasterCard hide caption

itoggle caption John Minchillo/AP Images for MasterCard

The Two-Way

CVS Pulls Apple Pay, And Many See A Fight Over Mobile Wallets

Rite Aid took the same step, leading many observers to note that the two companies are part of a group of retailers that's developing its own payment system, called CurrentC.