Wall St Week Ahead - 'Cliff' concerns give way to earnings focus

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Investors' "fiscal cliff" worries are likely to give way to more fundamental concerns, like earnings, as fourth-quarter reports get under way next week.Financial results, which begin after the market closes on Tuesday with aluminum company Alcoa , are expected to be only slightly better than the third-quarter's lackluster results. As a warning sign, analyst current estimates...

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Wall Street economists see Fed's Treasury buying ending in 2013: Reuters poll

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Most economists at Wall Street's top financial institutions expect the Federal Reserve in 2013 to end the program with which it bought Treasury debt in an effort to stimulate the economy, according to a Reuters poll on Friday.Economists at nine of 16 primary dealers -- the large financial institutions that do business directly with the Fed -- said they expect the current Fed...

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Fed's policy "thresholds" plan surprised dealers: poll

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Very few Wall Street economists expected the U.S. Federal Reserve to adopt policy thresholds at its last meeting, results from a New York Fed poll of primary dealers showed on Friday, highlighting how surprising was the decision.The 20 dealers, who have access to the central bank's discount window, were polled before the Fed's December 11-12 policy meeting. At the meeting the...

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UK backs Lucentis for new use after Novartis cuts price

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's healthcare cost watchdog has given its backing to eye drug Lucentis to treat diabetes-related problems after Swiss drugmaker Novartis offered it at a discount to the National Health Service.The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE), in a reversal of an earlier decision, said on Friday Lucentis should now be available for patients with diabetic macular...

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Co-op hit with FSA fine over PPI complaint handling

LONDON (Reuters) - The FSA said on Friday it had fined The Co-operative Bank 113,300 pounds for failing to handle complaints regarding payment protection insurance (PPI) properly.The Financial Services Authority said the Co-op incorrectly put on hold complaints over the mis-selling of the loan insurance during an unsuccessful High Court challenge by the British Bankers Association to FSA measures...

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Greece's Samaras to visit Germany next week

BERLIN (AP) — The German government says Chancellor Angela Merkel will meet Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras in Berlin next week.Merkel spokesman Steffen Seibert said Merkel will welcome Samaras to the chancellery on Tuesday.He said Friday that the informal meeting offers an opportunity for the two leaders to review progress that Greece has made in implementing reform plans. Samaras will be in...

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Sweden honors WWII hero with commemoration day

STOCKHOLM (AP) — Sweden will honor its World War II hero Raoul Wallenberg with an annual commemoration day in recognition of his achievements in saving thousands of Jews from the Nazis in Hungary.Wallenberg, who would have turned 100 this year, was on a diplomatic mission in Hungary when detained by Soviet authorities in 1945. He is believed to have died in captivity, though the time and circumstances...

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