Time works against candidates on Social Security, Medicare fixes (McClatchy Newspapers via Yahoo! News) WASHINGTON — Social Security and Medicare long have been considered the nation's fiscal time bombs, and the ticking is getting louder. But presidential candidates Barack Obama and John McCain have no comprehensive plans to overhaul the systems, and are campaigning almost as if they don't notice them.

Sector Snap: Retail brokerages trade mixed (AP via Yahoo! Finance) Shares of retail brokerages were mixed Friday as concerns about the ongoing credit crisis continued to plague Wall Street.

First National Bank of Michigan's first retail branch to open in Portage as business expands (The Kalamazoo Gazette)Not every bank is America is in need of a bailout. First National Bank of Michigan is expanding, looking to move into the retail banking market and taking advantage of a strong position at a time when many national bank holding companies are having problems. Related Content • Follow the money on Gazette business reporter Alex Nixon's blog.

Firms should not see data security as a ‘one-size fits all’ requirement, says Verizon report (Computer Weekly)Data security should not be seen as a "one-size fits all" requirement, says Verizon Business, because different industry sectors have differerent requirements.

Security tightened for churches in State (The Hindu)CHENNAI: The police have beefed up security for churches and other Christian institutions in Tamil Nadu in the wake of attacks on Christians and churches in Orissa and Karnataka, DGP K.P. Jain said. A press release from the DGP said so ...

New Zealand Retail Sales on Tap - Will Improved Spending Help the Kiwi? (Daily FX via Yahoo! Finance) Retail spending in New Zealand has certainly weakened throughout the first half of the year, and conditions may only get worse as the economy slipped into a recession for the first time since 1998.

Morning Hemlines: Takashimaya, Ann Taylor, Diesel, Retail Stocks (Portfolio.com via Yahoo! Finance) Japanese department store companies Takashimaya and H2O Retailing will merge, creating the second biggest department store group in the country. Retail stocks saw a huge one-day drop on Thursday.