NEW YORK » Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is giving customers a head start on holiday shopping, launching its annual layaway program two weeks earlier than last year.

It’s the latest sign of retailers getting more aggressive about grabbing holiday shoppers early. Stores have offered holiday discounts earlier as they battle competition from online retailers.

Walmart shoppers were allowed to put their items on hold starting Friday. Each item must cost $10 or more, down from the $15 limit last year. All items held must be worth a total of $50. Customers will have more time to pay for their items this year, 90 days instead of the 60 days they were given last year.

Airbnb to collect City of Light tourist tax

PARIS » Home-sharing company Airbnb has agreed to incorporate in its prices a small tourist tax on rental apartments in Paris — following a request by Paris authorities.

Airbnb said it would collect 95 cents per person, per day, to be paid by lodging tourists from Oct. 1.

Paris’ City Hall said that it’s a move to bring Airbnb more in line with city hotels, which already pay the tax and are bearing the brunt of increased competition. Parisian hosts are already required to pay income tax.

Cable TV firm has highest wage disparity

Discovery Communications topped a list of companies with the largest pay difference between their chief executives and median workers, according to a new study by jobs and recruiting company Glassdoor.

The ratio between CEO David M. Zaslav’s pay and the median pay of Discovery workers is 1,951-to-1, according to the study. In 2014 Zaslav made $156 million, while median pay was $80,000.

Discovery Communications owns popular U.S. cable channels including Discovery Network, TLC and Animal Planet.

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