  |  | Dow, S&P 500 end down for 4th straight session | NEW YORK (Reuters) - The Dow and the S&P 500 closed down for a fourth consecutive session on Wednesday as uncertainty grew over when the Federal Reserve will start to slow its stimulus. | |  |   |  | Upbeat U.S. data points to growth momentum | WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. private-sector hiring rose in November at the fastest clip in a year, opening the door wider for the Federal Reserve to start trimming its bond purchases within the next few months. | |  | |  |  | Billionaire investor Icahn steps up pressure on Apple | SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Billionaire investor Carl Icahn said on Wednesday that he has filed a shareholder proposal with Apple for a much smaller stock buyback plan than he has advocated previously, as he continued to pressure Apple to share more of its cash pile. | |  | |   |  | Fifth Third settles SEC charges over financial crisis accounting | (Reuters) - Fifth Third Bancorp, a large U.S. midwest regional bank, agreed to pay $6.5 million to settle U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission charges that it accounted improperly for troubled commercial real estate loans during the 2008 financial crisis, reducing its reported loss. | |  | |   |  | Barrick says Munk to step down, two other directors out | TORONTO (Reuters) - Barrick Gold Corp confirmed on Wednesday that 86-year old chairman and founder Peter Munk will leave the board at the gold miner's next annual meeting in the spring, and announced two other departures from its board. | |  | |   |  | American Airlines launches repricing effort | NEW YORK (Reuters) - American Airlines is seeking to reprice its $1.9 billion exit financing loan via lead arranger Deutsche Bank, sources told Thomson Reuters LPC. 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