At The Motley Fool, we know our readers like to be informed. Here's a quick look at today's most relevant financial news, boiled down to what you need to know. In today's video, we cover the following:

  • U.S. retailers kicked off the holiday shopping season with a record start -- pulling in $52.4 billion, up 16% from a year ago. That's welcome news for investors.
  • What retailers can expect from today's Cyber Monday action.
  • AT&T (NYSE: T) has set aside $4 billion to cover part of the breakup fee it will owe T-Mobile if its attempted merger with the mobile company falls through.

So there you have it -- the top financial stories of the day. If you're interested in getting all the news and commentary on these stocks, sign up for My Watchlist -- it's free!