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IDC says PC global shipments of PCs fell 14 percent in the first three months this year, the sharpest plunge seen since the research firm started tracking the industry in 1994....

Fortune reporter Philip Elmer-Dewitt compiles sell-side and independent analysts forecasts on Apple.  He has gathered 56 projections that have an average of 18.4 million iPads sold from the Street analysts and 17.7 million from the independent analysts.  The median for all of them is 18 million, which would be 53% growth from last year’s 11.8 million and down 21% from December’s quarter.

Raspberry Pi, the tiny, ultra-cheap, Linux-based PC, went on sale Monday in the U.S. through retailer Allied Electronics, but it's already out of stock. The A version of the computer, which only costs $25, has 256MB of RAM, a single USB 2.0 socket, an HDMI, SD card, and 3.5 audio sockets, but no Ethernet port. Available only through Allied, the A is now completely out of stock for U.S. customers. The $35 Raspberry Pi B is also out of stock at Allied, but it can be bought through Newark, another retailer, which only carries that particular model.

March is turning out to be the best month for auto sales in at least six years. Major automakers including Ford, Chrysler, Toyota, General Motors and Nissan all reported increases, with some reporting their best monthly totals since the start of the Great Recession in December of 2007.

Justin Timberlake's comeback album has sold nearly 1 million units its first week out. Nielsen SoundScan announced Tuesday that the singer's third album, "The 20/20 Experience," has moved 968,000 units. It's the 19th album in Nielsen's 12-year history that has sold more than 900,000 albums in a single week.

Sales of new homes fell in February after climbing to the highest level in more than four years in January. Sales of new homes dropped to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 411,000 in February, the Commerce Department reported Tuesday. That is a decline of 4.6 percent from the January level of 431,000, which had been the strongest sales pace since September 2008.

U.S. retailers are posting moderate sales for February, dealing with mixed signals like payroll-tax increases and later income-tax refunds that were countered by a rousing stock market and better housing reports.

Cuban cigar sales rose last year despite the ongoing economic crisis in some of the most important European markets including No. 1 buyer Spain, state-run tobacco company officials said Tuesday....

The US economy registers surprisingly strong consumer confidence and new home sales data, suggesting the recovery is gathering steam.

Adele's is named as the world's biggest seller for a second year as global sales figures show the first increase in music revenues for 14 years.