Business Finance & Economy - latest

The Trading Radar highlights key earnings and economic announcements for tomorrow's trading session: Before The Market Opens Economic: 8:30am ET

• Personal Income/Spending - gain of 0.4% and 0.1%, respectively

10:30am ET

• Dallas Fed Manufacturing Activity - 0.5

Earnings: First Financial Holdings, Inc.

(Nasdaq: FFCH) - consensus EPS $0.09 Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI) - consensus EPS $0.69 Haemonetics Corp. (NYSE: HAE) - consensus EPS $0.80 Heartland Financial Usa, Inc.

(Nasdaq: HTLF) - consensus EPS $0.34 Ingles Markets, Inc.

The British government’s so-called money transfers prop up its poorer regions, keeping them from the kind of collapse suffered in euro zone nations like Greece.

The economist widely acknowledged to have predicted the financial crash of 2008 holds little hope that global economic troubles will be fixed anytime soon and warns that without major policy changes things can still get much worse.

VH1, BIO, Logo, Hasbro Studios, Ch. 4 join 2012...

I never worked in any company or organization, so you people can guess I do not have much idea.

Washington, D.C. (Press Release – January 18, 2012) – A national small business advocacy organization said that small businesses and workers will suffer because of President Obama’s decision to reject the Keystone XL pipeline.

Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council (SBE Council) President & CEO Karen Kerrigan observed that the president’s decision came down to pure politics given the facts supporting Keystone’s construction, as well as the positive outcomes the pipeline would produce for America.

The American economy picked up steam last quarter, with output growing at an annualized rate of 2.8 percent, a faster rate than the 1.8 percent of the third quarter.

UPGRADES Atlantic Equities lifts US Bancorp (NYSE: USB) from Underweight to Neutral, raising its price target from $26 to $30.

National Bank boosts Potash Corp. (NYSE: POT) from Underperform to Sector Perform, its price target raised from $39.50 to $46.

Craig-Hallum upgrades Teradyne (NYSE: TER) from Hold to Buy, its price target lifted from $15 to $20.50. Raymond James raises First Niagara Financial (Nasdaq: FNFG) from Underperform to Market Perform.

UPS says a charge related to a new method of accounting for pensions and retirement plans will significantly reduce its reported earnings for the fourth-quarter and full year of 2011.

U.S. economic growth picked up speed in the final three months of 2011, expanding at the fastest pace in 1-1/2 years, according to new data released Friday.