Shares, euro up on hopes of U.S. "cliff" deal, BOJ easing

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Asian shares rose and the euro hovered around multi-month highs on Wednesday as signs of progress in resolving the U.S. "fiscal cliff" budget crisis boosted demand for riskier assets. Expectations of more aggressive monetary easing under Japan's new government also drove stocks higher, with the Bank of Japan (BOJ) starting a two day meeting on Wednesday. ...

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Clinton gets accountability report on Benghazi attacks

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Monday received an official review of the September attack on a U.S. diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya, setting the stage for testimony on an incident that prompted a political furor and sharp questions about security at U.S. diplomatic facilities overseas. The State Department said Clinton - who is convalescing after suffering...

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Daniel Inouye, Longtime Hawaii U.S. Senator, Dies at 88

12/17/2012 at 06:45 PM EST Daniel Inouye, Hawaii's nine-term Democratic Senator and the highest-ranking Asian-American politician in American history, died Monday at age 88 of respiratory complications. His office said the Honolulu native's last word was "Aloha." A second-generation "Nisei" born in 1924, Inouye...

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Experts: No link between Asperger's, violence

NEW YORK (AP) — While an official has said that the 20-year-old gunman in the Connecticut school shooting had Asperger's syndrome, experts say there is no connection between the disorder and violence.Asperger's is a mild form of autism often characterized by social awkwardness."There really is no clear association between Asperger's and violent behavior," said psychologist Elizabeth Laugeson, an assistant...

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Optimism about "cliff" boost market; financials lead

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The S&P 500 ended at its highest level in almost two months on Monday on rising hopes that negotiations over the "fiscal cliff" were making progress and that a deal could be reached in days. After weeks of stalemate, President Barack Obama and Republican House Speaker John Boehner met at the White House on Monday, raising hopes that Washington will be able to...

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Japan's next PM Abe must deliver on economy, cope with China

TOKYO (Reuters) - Conservative ex-premier Shinzo Abe will get a second chance to lead Japan after his Liberal Democratic Party surged back to power in Sunday's election, but he must move swiftly to bolster a sagging economy and manage strained ties with China to avoid the fate of his short-lived predecessors. Abe, whose party won by a landslide just three years after a crushing defeat,...

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Cisco hires bank to sell home wireless router unit: report

(Reuters) – Networking equipment company Cisco Systems Inc has hired Barclays to sell its Linksys home router unit, a report said on Sunday.The business, which Cisco acquired for $ 500 million in 2003, will likely be valued for less because it has low margins, according to Bloomberg.The sale is part of Cisco’s strategy to shed its consumer unit and focus on its software and technology services businesses.Last...

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Newtown Shooting Victims: Their Photos, Their Lives

When his mother told him she loved him, Noah replied, "Not as much as I love you, Mom," said his uncle, according to the AP. In another classroom, his twin sister, whom he called his best friend, survived the shooting. Along with their older sister, 8-year-old Sophia, the siblings were inseparable. "He was just a really lively, smart kid," added his uncle. "He would have become a great...

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Experts: No link between Asperger's, violence

NEW YORK (AP) — While an official has said that the 20-year-old gunman in the Connecticut school shooting had Asperger's syndrome, experts say there is no connection between the disorder and violence.Asperger's is a mild form of autism often characterized by social awkwardness."There really is no clear association between Asperger's and violent behavior," said psychologist Elizabeth Laugeson, an assistant...

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Wall Street Week Ahead: Holiday "on standby" as clock ticks on cliff

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The last two weeks of December are traditionally quiet for stocks, but traders accustomed to a bit of time off are staying close to their mobile devices, thanks to the "fiscal cliff." Last-minute negotiations in Washington on the so-called fiscal cliff - nearly $600 billion of tax increases and spending cuts set to take effect in January that could cause a sharp slowdown...

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