Inquiry Into I.R.S. Lapses Shows No Links to White House

WASHINGTON — An 18-month congressional investigation into the Internal Revenue Service’s mistreatment of conservative political groups seeking tax exemptions has failed to show coordination between agency officials and political operatives in the White House, according to a report released on Tuesday.

Economic Vital Signs Strongest in a Decade

The American economy grew last quarter at its fastest rate in over a decade, providing the strongest evidence to date that the recovery is finally gaining sustained power more than five years after it began.

Bolstered by robust spending among consumers and businesses alike, economic output rose at an annual rate of 5 percent during the summer months, the Commerce Department said Tuesday, a sharp revision from its earlier estimate of 3.9 percent. The advance followed a second quarter where growth reached a rate of 4.6 percent after a decline last winter that was exacerbated by particularly harsh weather.

The revision was led by an upswing in investment by businesses, a powerful force for growth in most economic recoveries but one that has lagged in the latest rebound. Higher consumer spending, including increased outlays on health care, and a narrower trade balance also contributed to the summer improvement. The gain makes the third quarter the strongest since the summer of 2003.

The United States economy grew at a better-than-expected rate in the third quarter.Third-Quarter G.D.P. Rose 3.5%, Lifting Hopes for U.S. Economy

The stronger data was greeted happily on Wall Street, with the Dow Jones industrial average closing above the 18,000 level for the first time.

As Ruble Falters, Russia Forces Exporters to Reduce Foreign Currency

MOSCOW — The Russian government said Tuesday that it was forcing five major state-controlled exporters, including the publicly traded energy behemoths Gazprom and Rosneft, to limit their foreign currency holdings to help prop up the ruble.

The value of the ruble has plummeted in recent months as the Russian economy took a two-fisted beating from a drop in worldwide oil prices and Western sanctions aimed at punishing the Kremlin over its policies in Ukraine.

In response to the ruble’s collapse, Russia sharply raised interest rates and sold off foreign currency reserves. There had also been widespread reports in recent days that top officials, including President Vladimir V. Putin, were pressuring the nation’s biggest companies and wealthiest executives for help, though any action was coyly described as voluntary.

Writing in the newspaper Novaya Gazeta, Aleksey Polukhin, an editor and commentator on economic issues, said that previously, government policy had been molded to suit the big businesses and enrich their executives — many of them Mr. Putin’s friends and allies. Now, he said, the businesses were being strong-armed to serve the state.

Taking a jab at Mr. Putin, he added, “The emperor with no clothes decided that these days it’s not proper for his retinue to wear clothes either.”

“…government policy had been molded to suit the big businesses and enrich their executives.”

Can you imagine that? That could never happen here.