US Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said congressional proposals to audit the Fed and strip it of regulatory powers as part of post-crisis reforms could damage prospects for economic and financial health.

There will be a short-term pullback after Thanksgiving in stock markets and there is a 50 percent chance that the US economy will double-dip, according to Paul Schatz, president of Heritage Capital.

Fresh economic reports painted a picture of a gradual economic recovery as consumer spending rose and durable orders unexpectedly fell. The employment picture strengthened as jobless claims tumbled more than expected.

Sales of new homes are expected to post a modest increase in October, reinforcing data this week that showed the real estate market is regaining its footing after a dramatic collapse.

Vietnam's central bank governor said on Wednesday the bank would raise the benchmark base rate to 8 percent from 7 percent effective Dec. 1 and announced a one-off devaluation in the dong, effective from this afternoon.

Federal Reserve officials are increasingly confident in a durable recovery for the U.S. economy, even though they do not see employment picking up soon, according to minutes from their November meeting released Tuesday.

David Rosenberg became the latest well-known economist to predict doom, telling CNBC the US economy is mired "in a form of Depression."

David Rosenberg became the latest well-known economist to predict doom and gloom, telling CNBC that the US economy is mired "in a form of Depression."

U.S. home prices rose for the fifth straight month and posted the second quarterly increase, but the pace of appreciation slowed and was less than expected, according to Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller indexes.

The economy grew more slowly than initially thought in the third quarter, according to data that hinted at a lackluster recovery.

President Barack Obama assured Americans that boosting jobs was a top priority, but gave no specifics about how to meet this goal that some economists say warrants more government spending.

"The dollar over the next year or two will tend to see downward pressure because our recovery will be fragile and uneven," says one economist.

The asset-price rally is running out of momentum and will soon crack, which could lead to a 30 percent correction in oil and a 20 percent correction in stocks, Sean Corrigan, chief investment strategist at Diapason Commodities Management, told CNBC.com.

The ultralow interest rates the U.S. has been paying on its colossal debt may not last much longer, and the White House estimates that the tab will exceed $700 billion a year in 2019, the New York Times reported.

The tiniest U.S. small businesses, which led the broader economy into the past two recessions and are widely regarded as the best hope for job creation in any recovery, are showing signs of improved confidence and financial health, according to a new study.