Before the Bell: Analysis: Scarred U.S. consumers a hard sell for traditional retail

	Click to View in Browser 01/1/2014 Analysis: Scarred U.S. consumers a hard sell for traditional retail NEW YORK (Reuters) - If there was one lesson from this year's holiday shopping season, it is that many traditional retailers are having to work a lot harder to persuade Americans to open their pocketbooks. Wall St. ends best year since 1990s with moderate gains NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks closed out their best year in more than 15 on Tuesday, with major indexes advancing throughout 2013 on the back of the Federal Reserve's massive stimulus and expectations for accelerating growth going forward. Spain's economy minister sees 'significant' job creation in 2014 MADRID (Reuters) - Spain's Economy Minister said on Wednesday that job creation in 2014 would be "significant" as a tentative economic recovery kicks in, but a poll showed most Spaniards do not expect any clear improvement until 2015. Apple says never worked with NSA on iPhone hacks SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Apple Inc has never worked with the U.S. National Security Agency and is unaware of efforts to target its smartphones, the company said in response to reports that the spy agency had developed a system to hack into and monitor iPhones. Cohen's SAC ends life as hedge fund with double-digit returns BOSTON (Reuters) - Billionaire investor Steven A. Cohen's SAC Capital Advisors is ending its life as a hedge fund with a 20.10 percent gain this year, marking one of the industry's best returns even after SAC pleaded guilty to insider trading charges, a source familiar with the numbers said. India cancels AgustaWestland helicopter deal: source NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India has cancelled its scandal-hit $770 million helicopter deal with AgustaWestland, part of Italian defense group Finmeccanica , a senior defense ministry official told Reuters on Wednesday. U.S. consumer mood brightens, but home price gains slow NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. consumers' mood improved as 2013 drew to a close, with many optimistic about their future job prospects, while home prices rose again in October, though the pace of gains slowed. China house prices show signs of stabilizing: surveys BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese property prices rose again in December, according to two private surveys, but are showing signs of stabilizing following government measures aimed at cooling the housing market and averting the threat of a bubble. Hewlett-Packard to cut 5,000 more jobs (Reuters) - Hewlett-Packard Co said it would cut 5,000 more jobs, bringing the total number of layoffs to 34,000, or 11 percent of its workforce. China's factory growth slower but resilient at year end BEIJING (Reuters) - Growth in China's factories slowed slightly in December as export orders and output weakened, official data showed on Wednesday, adding to views that while the world's second-largest economy remains resilient, it lost some steam in late 2013. Related Video Stocks 2013: one for the record books It's a bird, it's a plane, it's Super Market Global Investing Cohen's SAC ends life as hedge fund with double-digit returns U.S. consumer mood brightens, but home price gains slow A daily digest of breaking business news, coverage of the US economy, major corporate news and the financial markets. Register Today   The latest Reuters articles on M&A, IPOs, private equity, hedge funds and regulatory updates delivered to your inbox each day. Register Today   » MORE NEWSLETTERS - 3 Times Square New York, NY 10036 USA © Copyright 2010 Thomson Reuters Ensure delivery of Reuters Newsmails, add mail@nl.reuters.com to your address book. Details Subscribe to other Reuters newsletters. Unsubscribe from this newsletter. Follow us on Twitter Friend us on Facebook Forward to a friend