Bloomberg Consumer spending is booming. Interest rates are bottoming out. Eastern Europe’s banking sector is on an upswing. After surviving the toxic mix of near-zero borrowing costs, harsh regulatory curbs and damage from foreign-currency mortgages, lenders are benefiting from economic expansion accelerating to the fastest in years across much of the European Union’s east. Polish banks’ combined net income rose ...

Bloomberg Indonesian authorities evacuated some 100,000 people in the island of Bali and shut its airport after Mount Agung volcano erupted, prompting airlines to cancel about 445 flights linking one of the most popular tourist destinations in Asia. Relocation from around Mount Agung’s crater began as volcanologists warned of a “very high likelihood” for a larger eruption, the National Disaster ...

Bloomberg The holiday shopping season is off to a strong start and retailers hope to continue the momentum today—Cyber Monday—the biggest online spending day of the year. Amazon.com Inc. and Wal-Mart Stores Inc. are vying for holiday spending with competing deals on flat-screen televisions, toys and gadgets. Traditional retailers Macy’s Inc., Sears Holdings Corp. and JC Penney Co. have all ...