By the slimmest of margins, California's remarkable winning streak for sales of new cars, trucks and SUVs has finally come to an end, falling just short of reaching six years of sustained growth.

Parcel shipping volume will grow annually at 5 to 7 percent between now and 2018, for a total increase of 20 percent, with the biggest gains coming in cross-border shipping, according to a study from Pitney Bowes.

This year's Black Friday and Cyber Monday were bigger than ever. But the numbers could be concealing an underlying trend away from those key dates in the retail calendar.

Transplace, a provider of transportation management services and logistics technology, has announced its acquisition of Lakeside Logistics, a Canadian-based logistics services company. This acquisition expands Transplace's presence throughout North America and supports its strategic growth in order to meet the supply chain needs of its growing customer base, the company says. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Deep inside a sprawling glass-and-cement edifice the size of an airplane hangar in the Spanish town of Arteixo, 10 designers swarm around a model dressed in cropped gray trousers and a double-breasted navy blazer. Sweaters, shirts and suits are spread out on the white-tile floor, while seamstresses in white labcoats stitch prototypes nearby. "It's classic, but it's new at the same time," says a woman from China. "I'm not sure about the bold patterns," counters a British woman, dressed in white sneakers and a flowing skirt. Others nod their assent or express doubt.

Holiday shoppers eager to snag big discounts turned to the internet in record fashion this week, one tracking company said, driving online sales on Black Friday to a new high. Consumers spent $3.34bn shopping online on Friday, a 21.6 percent increase from the same day last year, according to Adobe, which tracks online retail transactions.