Crosscurrents from Europe, a gaggle of Fed speakers and the start of earnings season in the coming week will provide a critical test for markets in the new year.

A new research report from Goldman Sachs finds that trading in exchange-traded funds does impact individual stocks, but not equally.

Don’t let the calm fool you: 2012 will be a make or break year for the euro and the euro zone. It is going to get very tricky from here on out.