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The two top members of a House-Senate conference committee negotiating over financial services reform legislation say an amendment requiring the Federal Reserve to determine “reasonable” swipe fees for debit card purchases could see some changes but will stay in the final version of the bill. The conference committee is working from the Senate version of the bill, which includes an amendment sponsored by Majority Whip Richard Durbin, D-Ill., that would require the Federal Reserve to establish rules that would result in the setting of “reasonable and proportional” rates for the interchange or “swipe” fees that Visa and MasterCard banks charge merchants to process debit card transactions. The amendment is not included in the House bill.

The Direct Marketing Association (DMA) today was joined by 47 other trade associations and business coalitions in sending a letter to each of the conferees on H.R. 4173, the “Restoring American Financial Stability Act” (RAFSA), urging them to keep language that would dramatically expand the powers of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) out of the final bill.

Sears has been delivering refrigerators and washing machines to U.S. homes for decades. Now the company is looking into delivering groceries too. The service, an expansion of Sears' year-old MyGofer online shopping portal, quietly launched on Memorial Day in Manhattan and in the Hamptons, said Tom Aiello, spokesman for the Hoffman Estates-based company. The home delivery service — which brings groceries, prescriptions, electronics and other goods from its Kmart stores — is slated to roll out to Chicago and other markets this summer, he said.

Import cargo volume at the nation’s major retail container ports is expected to be up 15 percent in June compared with the same month a year ago, and double-digit increases should continue into the fall as the U.S. economy recovers, according to the monthly Global Port Tracker report released today by the National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates.

In-store kiosks are a place where brick-and-mortar retailing meets the internet. It's a new initiative for Kohl's, aimed at boosting sales in whatever channel works for the customer: in the store or online.

Fans of The Jim Henson Company's well-known brands like Fraggle Rock and Farscape, as well as fans of the Company's new hit pre-school properties, including Sid the Science Kid and Dinosaur Train, now have an online retail destination to shop for all of their favorite merchandise at the company's official e-commerce website at www.henson.com.

The Sportsman’s Guide, a premier sporting goods brand in the portfolio of Redcats USA, announced today the launch of WorkWearSavings.com, the ultimate online source for name brand bargains on work apparel and footwear at big discount prices.

Wal-Mart announced a program Thursday in which its workers can receive college credit from the online American Public University and receive a tuition discount from the school. The company also said it will commit $50 million over three years to help workers pay for books and tuition above the reduced tuition rate. After the reduction, tuition will cost $212.50 per undergraduate credit hour and $255 for graduate credits.

As the economy continues its slow rebound, Americans will spend slightly more paying homage to the most important men in their lives this Father’s Day. According to NRF’s 2010 Father’s Day Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey, conducted by BIGresearch, the average person will spend $94.32 on dear ole dad this year, up from $90.89 last year. Total Father’s Day spending is expected to reach $9.8 billion.

Outsell estimates that marketing on social networks will grow 43.3 percent in 2010. Forrester Research predicts that B-to-B firms will spend $54 million on social media marketing in 2014, up from just $11 million in 2009. Paid advertising on social networks — banners, text ads and search advertising, as well as the more targeted advertising being deployed by Facebook and MySpace — is a small portion of B-to-B marketers’ social spending.