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Even as the rest of the world's efforts to push consumer spending and economic growth are floundering, Brazil reported a more-than-expected rise in retail sales during November.

Many of the U.S. economic indicators, including the unemployment data on Friday, over the past few weeks have given rise to the false belief that the economy is finally improving.

A coalition of seven major public pension systems, led by New York City Comptroller John Liu, has asked the boards of four of the largest U.S. banks to examine their mortgage and foreclosure practices.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 22.55 points, or 0.19 percent, to finish at 11.674.76. At one point the Dow was down as much as 100 points. The S&P 500 dropped 2.35 points, or 0.18 percent, to 1271.50; while the Nasdaq shed 6.72 points, or 0.25 percent, to 2703.17.

In a ruling that may affect foreclosures nationwide, Massachusetts' highest court voided the seizure of two homes by Wells Fargo & Co and US Bancorp after the banks failed to show they held the mortgages at the time they foreclosed.

Bank shares are weakening after the Massachusetts State Supreme Judicial Court upheld a decision that two foreclosures from U.S. Bancorp (NYSE: USB) and Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC) were not valid because the banks did not properly show they held the mortgages at the time of the foreclosure.

Politicians now prefer to appoint JPMorgan executives to highly-visible positions rather than risk public outrage by choosing their Goldman Sachs counterparts.

In a ruling that may affect foreclosures nationwide, Massachusetts' highest court voided the seizure of two homes by Wells Fargo & Co and US Bancorp after the banks failed to show they held the mortgages at the time they foreclosed.

Stocks fell on Friday as bank shares lost ground after a Massachusetts court ruling against Wells Fargo and US Bancorp in which two home foreclosures were voided.

The EU and the IMF currently have enough funds to bailout another couple of countries that are steeped in debt. Currently, Italy, Spain and Portugal are fighting to survive while investors wonder which one will throw in the towel first.

The five largest mortgage loan servicers, including Bank of America Corp and JPMorgan Chase & Co, may be the first to settle with 50 state attorneys general who are investigating foreclosure practices, Bloomberg reported, citing Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller.

Recent collaborative study by Wall Street Journal and Indeed.com shows spurt in hiring across companies in the US

Recent economic reports indicate that the average U.S. consumer is feeling more confident about the economy and intends to spend more with that belief. Consumer spending, which forms about 70 percent of GDP growth, rose in November for the sixth straight month, the Commerce Department reported on Thursday. Personal income also inched up marginally, which prices also rose during the month.

The top after-market NASDAQ Stock Market losers are: pSivida, Alimera Sciences, Abiomed, Exceed Company, Allos Therapeutics, FX Energy, XOMA, Celgene, Dyax, and Marvell Technology Group.

The 2010 Census results show that the jobs market and population growth go hand in hand.

The stock market rallied modestly on U.S. mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activities and China’s continued support for European Union’s (EU) sovereign debt market.

Homebuilder confidence in the market for newly built, single-family homes remained unchanged in December from the previous month, according to the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI).

Industrial production rebounded in November in its biggest gain since July, pointing to an acceleration in the pace of the recovery during the fourth quarter.

China has stubbornly refused to cede to U.S demands to let the yuan rise against the dollar. The question is, among the US and China who will gain and who will lose if China ever agreed to appreciate its currency?

The U.S. economy will begin to show signs of improvement in 2011 as major indicators such as housing and consumer spending begin to improve by mid-2011, according to an annual outlook report from Wells Fargo.

Consumer credit in the U.S. rose during October, mainly boosted by a rise in student loans, a report by the Federal Reserve said on Tuesday.

The average American has saved less than 7 percent of his desired retirement nest egg and will likely have to keep working in retirement to supplement his income.

A Pennsylvania-based law firm has been sued for using non-lawyers to review, sign and file foreclosures that caused people to lose their homes.

U.S. short-term interest rate futures traders boosted bets the Federal Reserve will wait until mid-2012 before raising rates, after a government report showed the U.S. jobless rate unexpectedly rose in November.

US stocks declined in early trade on Friday as fresh concerns over European debt crisis weighed on sentiment.

Existing home sales in the U.S. dropped in October after two months of strong increases, the National Association of Realtors said in a statement.

The Irish government is busy finalizing an austerity plan that is expected to save about 15 billion euros, even as the opposition called for early elections in January.

Stocks finished mixed, but bounced back from early lows on worries that Ireland’s debt crisis could spread to other peripheral euro zone nations, follow a request by the Irish government for a multi-billion euro funding bailout.

The U.S. economic growth is expected to remain sluggish over the next couple of years, as inflation heads towards zero and unemployment remains high. Official U.S. GDP figures are due on Tuesday, along with sales information of existing homes.