Wire

U.S. suit against Standard & Poor’s raises stakes for Wall Street

The Justice Department’s filing of a multi-billion-dollar fraud lawsuit against the Standard & Poor’s rating agency this week culminates a massive, multi-year federal investigation code-named “Alchemy,” but it’s only the start of a more public legal battle joined by at least 16 state attorneys ...

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ECONOMY

U.S. shrimp processors seek federal help to slow imports

They survived hurricanes and oil spills, but Gulf Coast shrimp processors say there’s no way they can battle foreign governments to stay in business.
LOCAL/STATE

Bank of America settlement questioned by watchdog group, N.J. Sen. Menendez

Watchdog group Public Citizen and a U.S. senator are calling for an investigation into Bank of America’s settlement with mortgage giant Fannie Mae in a dispute involving $1.4 trillion in loans.
ECONOMY

If debt ceiling deal fails, U.S. could delay tax refunds

Absent an early deal to raise the nation’s debt ceiling, the federal government could run out of ways to pay creditors and Social Security recipients by mid-February, earlier than expected, according to a new analysis released Monday.
WIRE

With tax deal, U.S. is off the cliff but not out of the woods

A day after the nation edged away from a fiscal cliff that had threatened economic doom, the realization that other ominous fiscal battles loom tempered any sense of celebration Wednesday in the nation’s capital.
WIRE

New Year means tax increases to pay for health care law

The tax man is coming in 2013. And he’s wearing surgical scrubs and has a stethoscope around his neck.
ECONOMY

Another ho-hum year for the economy likely in 2013

For the third straight year, economists are only a bit more optimistic about prospects for growth and hiring than they were 12 months earlier.
WIRE

Fiscal crisis is the new normal in Washington

They don’t manage crises. They manage BY crisis. The tortured bargaining by Washington politicians to avoid the higher taxes and drastic spending cuts due to take effect this week aimed at best at a small and temporary fix – and provided a vivid reminder why the American political system...
WIRE

Senate passes fiscal deal, fate uncertain in House

The Senate passed an agreement early Tuesday to solve the nation’s threatening fiscal crisis, a last minute plan to avert sweeping tax increases for most Americans and postponing cuts to government spending that economists say could have triggered a recession.
WIRE

Big Beef: Beef’s raw edges

The Kansas City Star investigated what the industry calls “bladed” or “needled” beef, and found the process exposes Americans to a higher risk of E. coli poisoning. While exact figures are difficult to come by, USDA surveys show that more than 90 percent of beef producers...
ECONOMY

Holiday bargain-shopping online can be a confusing deal

Browsing for the best deal on the Internet during this holiday season can make even the savviest shopper feel like a high-stakes gambler.