BREAKING NEWS

Wall Street drifted along today without any clear direction. Seems traders are waiting for all of the posturing to end and for some action from Washington on the fiscal cliff issue.

AM BUSINESS BRIEF 12-4-12

Continuing uncertainty over the fiscal cliff and some disappointing manufacturing news depressed stocks today. Wall Street's key averages closed in the red.

AM BUSINESS BRIEF 12-3-12

AM BUSINESS BRIEF 11-30-12

Stocks have closed little-changed, as Washington works to come-up with a budget deal.

AM BUSINESS BRIEF 11-28-12

The Federal Reserve's newest Beige Book survey finds a pickup in consumer spending and home sales helped boost economic growth in October and early this month in most parts of the United States. Activity in the Northeast was slowed by Superstorm Sandy.

AM BUSINESS BRIEF 11-27-12

Apparently Americans are feeling more upbeat about jobs and the economy. Consumer confidence is at its highest point in almost five years. So says the Conference Board:

Today is "cyber Monday," but some analysts predict it's just the start. They expect to see big online shopping each Monday right up til Christmas.

Wall Street ends the week on a high note, with stocks up more than one-percent on the day. The gains capped a big rebound for the market. All three major stock indexes rose more than three-percent for the week; the best weekly performance in better than five months. Today, traders were encouraged by some positive economic signals out of Germany and China.

AM BUSINESS BRIEF 11-22-12

Thanksgiving marks the official start of the holiday shopping season, with some retailers offering "Black Friday" specials starting tonight. Retail analyst Marshal Cohen says if you want to score some deals, you can't get carried away:

AM BUSINESS BRIEF 11-21-12

Wall Street stocks finished higher in a quiet pre-Thanksgiving trading session.

Encouraged by the start of deficit talks at the White House, but wary of stepped up fighting in the Mideast, Wall Street's key averages registered modest gains today. The Dow had been down as much as 71 points in morning trading but turned higher after the budget meeting.

AM BUSINESS BRIEF 11-16-12

Stocks continue to head south, with Wall Street's key averages giving up more ground today. Wal-Mart's shares fell sharply, after the retailer issued a weak outlook for fourth-quarter profits.

AM BUSINESS BRIEF 11-15-12

Concern about the "fiscal cliff" and more unrest in the Mideast took a toll on Wall Street today, sending stocks sharply lower.

AM BUSINESS BRIEF 11-14-12

How to avoid the fiscal cliff. Wells-Fargo economist Mark Vitner says it's important for the president and Congress to hammer out a deal:

AM BUSINESS BRIEF 11-12-12

After a tough week, Wall Street stocks closed modestly higher today. Shares got a boost from talk of a compromise to avoid the so-called "fiscal cliff." But analysts say investors will remain skittish -- the market volatile -- until a deal is firmly in place.