The Other Side of Life 24/7: Daily Investor Briefing: Wall Street climbs on economy bets as...

Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Daily Investor Briefing: Wall Street climbs on economy bets as...

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12/18/2012

Reuters Election 2012 Daily round-up of the day's top news from the campaign trail, the White House and all the politics in between

Wall Street climbs on economy bets as it looks past "cliff"

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks rallied on strong volume on Tuesday, capping off the S&P 500's best two-day run in a month, on confidence that a deal would be struck in Washington to avoid painful spending cuts and tax hikes that could hurt the economy.

House Republicans eye limited fiscal cliff bill

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - With time running short before a Dec. 31 deadline, House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner will begin work on legislation that simply would extend current low income tax rates for all families with incomes below $1 million a year, according to an aide.

Newtown backlash prompts Bushmaster rifle maker sale

(Reuters) - The company whose AR-15 type Bushmaster rifle was used in the Newtown school massacre in Connecticut will be immediately put up for sale, its private equity owner Cerberus Capital Management LP said on Tuesday in response to investor concerns.

Wal-Mart seen facing sizeable fines in U.S. bribery probe

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Wal-Mart Stores may be facing sizeable fines related to allegations of widespread bribery at its Mexican affiliate, after a second report from the New York Times provided more details about the scope of the potential misconduct.

NYSE exec says exchanges moving closer to "kill switch"

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. regulators and exchanges are getting closer to a framework for a "kill switch" that could be used to shut down trading before software glitches get out of control and wreak havoc on markets, a top exchange official said on Tuesday.

U.S. hits China wind towers with duties as high-level talks begin

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States on Tuesday pressed forward with plans to slap punitive duties on wind turbine towers from China, keeping up friction on the clean energy front as it welcomed a high-level Chinese delegation for trade and economic talks.

Samsung drops attempt to ban Apple sales in Europe

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Korea's Samsung Electronics on Tuesday said it would drop law suits aimed at banning the sale of Apple Inc. products in Europe just a day after scoring a victory in a battle in the United States with the maker of iPhones.

Clearwire, Sprint set up $120 million breakup fee

(Reuters) - Sprint Corp promised to pay Clearwire Corp a $120 million breakup fee if its $2.2 billion purchase of roughly half of the smaller wireless service provider does not go ahead.

Bank of Japan to mull 2 percent inflation target as Abe turns up heat

TOKYO (Reuters) - The Bank of Japan will ease monetary policy this week and consider adopting a 2 percent inflation target no later than in January, sources say, responding to pressure from next Prime Minister Shinzo Abe for stronger efforts to beat deflation.

JPMorgan names new mortgage banking chief

(Reuters) - JPMorgan Chase & Co promoted Kevin Watters to be chief of its home loan business, relieving Co-Chief Operating Officer Frank Bisignano of the temporary assignment to clean up the lender's mortgage issues.