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Economic policy

Stock market is a wild card in fiscal cliff talks
Congress and the White House can significantly soften the initial impact of the "fiscal cliff" even if they fail to reach a compromise by Dec. 31.
AP Source: Obama to help unveil factory expansion
President Barack Obama will help announce expansion of a truck engine plant when he visits a Detroit suburb on Monday. The president is visiting the ...
China November trade weak in challenge to economy
China's trade weakened sharply in November, adding to challenges for the world's second-largest economy as a gradual recovery takes shape.
Obama, Boehner meet to discuss 'fiscal cliff'
President Barack Obama and House Speaker John Boehner met Sunday at the White House to discuss the ongoing negotiations over the impending "fiscal ...
China's money changes the landscape in Australia
Tony Clift's family has plowed the rich black soil of Australia's Liverpool Plains for six generations. The thought of selling never crossed his mind ...
Obama maintains standing with Cuban-Americans
The door for travel to Cuba cracked open during President Barack Obama's first term. Cuban-Americans can now visit family on the island as often as ...
Booze, smokes on agenda for quirky gov't group
Deep in a secure laboratory just outside Washington sits the federal government's heaviest smoker. It is a half-ton hulk of a machine, all brushed ...
Obama: Republicans blocking middle-class tax cuts
President Barack Obama said Saturday that Republicans in the House are blocking a bill that would prevent a tax increase on the first $250,000 of ...
Obama request for Sandy aid could face hurdles
President Barack Obama's proposal for $60.4 billion in federal aid for states hit by Superstorm Sandy adds a huge new item to an end-of-year ...
US consumer borrowing rises to record $2.75T
Americans swiped their credit cards more often in October and borrowed more to attend school and buy cars. The increases drove U.S. consumer debt to ...
Obama asks Congress for $60.4B in Sandy aid
President Barack Obama asked Congress Friday for $60.4 billion in federal aid for New York, New Jersey and other states hit by Superstorm Sandy in ...
Boehner: No progress in fiscal cliff talks
House Speaker John Boehner said Friday there has been no progress in negotiations to avert a "fiscal cliff" combination of automatic tax increases and ...
Apple holds back S&P, Nasdaq; Dow ends higher
Apple spoiled the stock market's party on Friday. Stocks shot higher in the early morning, after the government reported that the U.S. added jobs in ...
Correction: Auto Sales story
In a story Dec. 3 about U.S. auto sales, The Associated Press, relying on information from the TrueCar.com auto pricing site, reported erroneously ...
On economics, foreign policy, Corker eager to act
Republican Sen. Bob Corker is spending a lot of time lately talking to Democrats. The freshman lawmaker from Tennessee unveiled his own 10-year, $4.
Draghi supports Hungary's embattled central bank
European Central Bank President Mario Draghi on Friday defended his Hungarian counterpart against the government's efforts to limit his independence ...
Trade-offs in raising Medicare eligibility age
Americans are living longer, and Republicans want to raise the Medicare eligibility age as part of any deal to reduce the government's huge deficits.
Analysis: DeMint move defies GOP shift to center
The surprise job change by the Senate's most prominent tea partyer will complicate Republican moderates' bid to nudge their party toward the center ...
Sandy is thought to have slowed US hiring in Nov.
Superstorm Sandy is widely thought to have slowed U.S. job growth last month. The only question is how much — an answer that's expected to emerge ...
Russian trade, human rights bill heads to Obama
A Russian trade and human rights bill cleared Congress and headed for President Barack Obama's signature Thursday, opening new export opportunities ...
Debt limit gives GOP leverage, Obama demands fix
The political fight that took the nation to the verge of defaulting on its debts last year is back, overshadowed by "fiscal cliff" disputes but with ...
Obama seeks to put personal touch on cliff talks
President Barack Obama, trying to put a personal touch on "fiscal cliff" negotiations, visited a northern Virginia family's basement apartment ...
ECB cuts growth outlook for eurozone, holds rates
The European Central Bank warned of another gloomy year for the 17 European Union countries that use the euro, cutting its forecast for economic ...
INSIDE WASHINGTON: Fiscal fight, broken politics
Here we slow again. Washington's leaders are back to form, playing a petty, peevish and dangerous brand of politics. All that's at stake is the fate ...
Key quotes from ECB head Draghi's press briefing
At his monthly news conference following the European Central Bank's policy-setting meeting, President Mario Draghi on Thursday answered questions ...