Car slump in France, Spain and Italy spells gloomy 2013

PARIS (Reuters) – Car sales in France, Spain and Italy in 2012 fell to the lowest levels in years, with December registration data underscoring the challenges facing the broader European economy.Automakers are facing a sustained slump in the European car market as the euro zone debt crisis and government austerity measures sap consumer demand.“The new car market continues to decline – a trait which...

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Obama: Cliff deal ‘within sight’

31 December 2012 Last updated at 14:18 ETA deal to avoid the “fiscal cliff” of tax rises and spending cuts is “within sight” – but not yet done, US President Barack Obama has said.But he told an audience of taxpayers it was unlikely that a “grand bargain” on tax and spending would happen.Democrats are said to have offered to extend tax cuts on couples earning up to $ 450,000 (£277,000). But divisions...

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Apple to drop patent claims against new Samsung phone

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Apple Inc has agreed to withdraw patent claims against a new Samsung phone with a high-end display after Samsung said it was not offering to sell the product in the crucial U.S. market.Apple disclosed the agreement in a filing on Friday in U.S. District Court in San Jose, California. Representatives for both Apple and Samsung declined to comment.Last month Apple asked to...

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The Unemployment Rate Is Dropping, Which Is Not as Good as It Sounds

As long as inflation remains in check, the Federal Reserve has promised not to raise interest rates until unemployment hits 6.5 percent. So how long until that happens? A few estimates are worth noting for the contradictions they reveal in the labor market.According to calculations by the Brookings Institution’s Hamilton Project, at the current pace of job growth, about 155,000 jobs per month over...

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Say Hello to Higher Taxes: Why Neither Party Wants a Deal

With five days to go until the fiscal cliff, Republicans and Democrats are displaying as much effort as New York Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez in the latter stages of a typical four-interception blowout—which is to say, none whatsoever. They can barely bestir themselves to maintain the pretense that they’re working to avoid the $ 600 billion of tax hikes and spending cuts due to arrive next week.President...

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In Brazil’s Favelas, a Middle Class Arises

The night before appliance retailer Casas Bahia opened in Rio de Janeiro’s largest slum, resident Joana Darc de Morandi couldn’t sleep. Shopping list in hand, Joana was first in line to get in, seven hours before some 200 people began streaming through the store’s front door. “It’s very important for the neighborhood,” Morandi, 57, says of Rocinha, the slum where she lives. “Casas Bahia being here...

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Norway minister’s EU exit warning

23 December 2012 Last updated at 09:08 ETNorway’s foreign minister has urged the UK to assess the advantages of staying in the European Union, rather than consider leaving.Norway is not in the EU but has access to the single market. UK Eurosceptics use it as a model for how the UK could relate to the EU from outside.But Foreign Minister Espen Eide said Oslo had “limited scope for influence”.“We are...

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Working-class neighborhood in Madrid wins “El Gordo” lottery

MADRID (Reuters) – Unemployed Spaniards in a highly indebted commuter town in the outskirts of Madrid celebrated with joy after sharing the top prize in “El Gordo“, the world’s biggest lottery.The 200-year-old Christmas draw doled out more than 2.5 billion euros ($ 3.3 billion) in prizes, with a top individual prize of 4 million euros. The smallest ticket, known as a “decimo” wins a tenth of the prize...

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Boehner: Still hope on cliff deal

21 December 2012 Last updated at 12:09 ETPlease turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play. John Boehner: “It is not the outcome I wanted, but it was the will of the House”Republicans will keep working to avoid the so-called “fiscal cliff” of tax rises and spending cuts, House Speaker John Boehner has said.Earlier, right-leaning Republicans rejected a plan by Mr Boehner to raise taxes on...

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IntercontinentalExchange buys NYSE Euronext for $8 billion

NEW YORK/LONDON (Reuters) – IntercontinentalExchange struck an $ 8.2 billion deal to buy NYSE Euronext, a combination that will propel the commodities market powerhouse into European financial futures but threaten to further reduce the clout of the New York Stock Exchange.The deal will create a new player in global derivatives trading and clearing that would take on CME Group Inc. While the New York...

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Bank chief house costs to be paid

19 December 2012 Last updated at 08:39 ETMark Carney, the next head of the Bank of England, will be paid £250,000 in housing costs in addition to his salary and pension costs.He will receive the money on top of his annual £480,000 salary and a yearly pension allowance of £144,000.The housing allowance will be taxed at the new top rate of tax of 45%, which will be in place by the time he takes up his...

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Only balanced plan to avoid “cliff” is Obama’s: White House

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The only proposal that avoids the year-end U.S. “fiscal cliff” in a balanced manner is the one President Barack Obama has put forward, White House spokesman Jay Carney said on Monday.“The only plan that we have seen that achieves the size and the balance that’s required for sustainable – for long-term deficit reduction and for putting our economy on a sustainable fiscal path,...

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Craft Brewers Threatened by Big Beer Brands

American craft brewers love to talk about how they’re stealing market share from the big beer companies, such as MillerCoors and Anheuser-Busch InBev (BUD). In the first half of the year, craft beer sales rose 14 percent, in dollar terms, according to the trade group Brewers Association. Their larger competitors can only dream of such gains in the U.S.Craft brewers, however, are increasingly...

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US prices fall on cheaper petrol

14 December 2012 Last updated at 10:02 ETUS consumers prices fell in November due to a sharp drop in petrol prices, according to official figures, as inflation in the economy remained weak.The consumer price index fell 0.3% from October, the first decline since May, the US Labor Department said.The gasoline index fell 7.4% in November, which more than offset gains in prices elsewhere.Stripping out...

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Fiat CEO: plan to buy Chrysler shares

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Italian carmaker Fiat SpA fully intends to acquire the 41.5 percent of Chrysler Group shares that it does not now own, but wrangling over the price could continue for a while, Fiat-Chrysler chief Sergio Marchionne said on Friday.Fiat is in arbitration proceedings with the owner of the shares, a United Auto Workers trust fund that pays medical benefits to retired workers. The trust...

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Fed sends clearer signal on keeping rates low

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Reserve sent its clearest signal to date Wednesday that it will keep interest rates super-low to boost the U.S. economy even after the job market has improved significantly.The Fed says it plans to keep its key short-term rate near zero at least until the unemployment rate drops below 6.5 percent — as long as expected inflation remains no more than 2.5 percent. Unemployment...

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Petrol strike threatens to cause chaos and hit economy in Italy

ROME (Reuters) – Italian petrol stations began a 60-hour strike late on Tuesday to protest against rising costs and falling profits, causing long queues as drivers rushed to fill up before pumps closed.Hitting at the peak shopping period before Christmas, the strike comes at unwelcome time for retailers. Weak consumer spending has been a key factor in Italy‘s sluggish economy, which has been dipping...

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Wall St Week Ahead: “Cliff” worries may drive tax selling

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Investors typically sell stocks to cut their losses at year end. But worries about the “fiscal cliff” – and the possibility of higher taxes in 2013 – may act as the greatest incentive to sell both winners and losers by December 31.The $ 600 billion of automatic tax increases and spending cuts scheduled for the beginning of next year includes higher rates for capital gains, making...

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US jobless rate at four-year low

7 December 2012 Last updated at 11:29 ETThe US added 146,000 jobs in November, official data shows, as the economy seemingly shrugged off storm Sandy.The unexpectedly strong performance brought the unemployment rate down to a four-year low of 7.7% of the workforce.The jobs figure was well above most analysts’ expectations and continued a recent surge that began in July.Weekly benefits data registered...

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Citigroup in 11,000 staff cull

5 December 2012 Last updated at 14:17 ETCitigroup says it is cutting 11,000 jobs worldwide in an efficiency drive, with most of the jobs being lost in its consumer banking division.The bank said the move, which will see its headcount shrink by 4%, would cost it about $ 1bn (£621m) in pre-tax charges.Shares in the bank rose 7% following the announcement.The move comes two months after the bank’s former...

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