The U.K. economy has settled down into a post EU-referendum pattern. Consumer spending is being constrained by the fall in the value of the pound, which has pushed up inflation by making imports dearer. But manufacturing has started to do better, in part because the weakness of sterling has made exports cheaper.

Every week, dozens of people walk into Petals N Wax, a Marina del Rey gift store, to return items they bought from online retailers.

With holiday shopping in full swing, Sears decided it was time to host a “grand reopening” for its department store at Fair Oaks Mall in Northern Virginia, complete with magic shows, jugglers, face painting and free cotton candy.