Consumers need more protection when it comes to making complaints about products.
David Crosling/AAP
The latest Productivity Commission report on how consumer law is being used shows that the same issues still haven’t been addressed for years.
“Cooling-off” periods for purchases made in high-pressure selling situations like door-to-door sales don’t help consumers, research shows.
image from shutterstock.com
Customers who make purchases under pressure don’t use the usual 10-day cooling-off period given under law, new research finds.
www.shutterstock.com/Imcsike
Black Friday and Cyber Monday start the frenzy of Christmas spending. Don’t let them lure you in with their deals.
Evening Teatime/Flickr
We have got stuck in a rut. Every month we explain away changes in retail spending with a lazy look to the skies.
Thousands protest against the proposed expansion of a chemical factory in Ningbo, Oct. 28, 2012.
AP
China has the world’s second-largest economy, powered by cheap labor and cheap fossil fuel. But now Chinese urbanites want greener, healthier lifestyles. Can the government deliver them?
Emerging retail players struggle to grow.
Shutterstock
South Africa’s concentrated formal supermarket industry stands as an obstacle against economic transformation and competitive pricing for consumers.
New ASIC regulations aim to improve transparency in the life insurance industry.
Simon Mossman/AAP
Data on the outcomes of life insurance claims will not only help individual customers but also financial advisers and super funds acting on behalf of consumers.
Lucy Fisher
Research shows the public has a poor understanding of what slavery is and how often they encounter it. Here’s how to tell if your manicurist is working against their will.
Shutterstock
If South African consumers were educated on how to read and understand the information on food labels, they may be more willing and capable of making healthier food choices.
Supporting an infant industry.
EPA/HOW HWEE YOUNG
A new industry is being created under President Xi Jinping. Meet the two men making it happen.
If consumers don’t like the way their mortgage brokers operates, they can shop around.
Mick Tsikas/AAP
The ASIC inquiry into how mortgage brokers are paid won’t do much to change an already competitive system.
High impact usage. Lightning strikes Toronto.
Sam Javanrouh/Flickr
A place for everyone, and everyone in their place. A guide for how you can help build a sustainable energy future.
Quinoa, obviously.
Roey Ahram
There is a curious paradox at the heart of the food group’s new nutrition scheme: the less consumers trust Big Food, the less attention they will pay to the labels.
A man you can trust?
Ysbrand Cosijn
Perhaps surprisingly, men spend more money after being romantically rejected while women do the opposite.
Bargain-priced bedlam.
REUTERS/Andrew Kelly
Black Friday sales are expected to continue their upward trend thanks to savvy retailers and consumers who can’t resist a bargain.
Moonshot. Enough reward points to take a longer trip?
Ting Chen
It’s a collosal business. But who gets the most out of ‘rewards’? And what if we all used ours at once?
Is Black Friday already a relic?
Reuters
‘Christmas creep’ is pushing the holiday shopping season earlier and earlier. Has Black Friday – its traditional start – lost its luster?
Consumer baiting?
Tom Simpson
Why do companies devote so much energy to ingenuity that causes harm?
Discretionary pricing… for scientists and surveyors.
Hidden Science Map
If the government wants to tackle wealth inequality, then it has the tools at its disposal to help people pay a fair amount for everyday goods.
Best for business.
Luke MacGregor/Reuters
Having a Queen is a distinct business advantage, particularly due to reverence for the monarchy in new and emerging markets like China.