He points out that sharp declines in stocks over the last two weeks have coincided with a weakening greenback, suggesting that international investors are losing their appetite for U.S. equities as the American currency loses value.

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To be sure, Charles Moskos, a sharp observer of military affairs, points out that the budget makes no provision for more manpower.

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The Swiss National Bank surprised markets by cutting its key interest rate target by 0.25 percentage points, citing growing economic uncertainty amid sharp plunges in global equity markets and a reduced risk of inflation.

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She also notes that a sharp depreciation in the yen over the last three months points to weaker prices and revenues in dollars.

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However, I was struck by the fairly sharp decline in the labor force participation rate, which has shrunk about three percentage points from around 66 percent before the recession to 63 percent currently.

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The index was predicted to ease by less than two points from 5.3 in July, but in the event a sharp downturn in the expectations gauge between both private and institutional investors caused a dramatic slump in the index to negative 13.5 and the lowest reading since September 2009.

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Israel's Derrick Sharp hit a three-pointer midway through the last quarter to cut Spain's lead to four points at 61-57.

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"The need for a tiny insect eye to gather lots of light and bring images into sharp focus on the receptors may explain the advantage of the eyes that deliver images in chunks instead of points, " says co-researcher Dr Elke Buschbeck.

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