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 NEW YORK (AP) - Earnings reports from Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and the latest inflation data are due in the week ahead, and could potentially drive the market toward its long-awaited "Santa Claus" rally.
Or give investors the holiday blues.
With oil prices well below $60 per barrel for the first time in months, inflation and fourth-quarter retail sales remain Wall Street's major preoccupations. High inflation means the Federal Reserve will continue raising interest rates which, while keeping prices in check, makes economic expansion far more difficult.
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