PRESS DIGEST - Washington Post - July 16

Washington, July 16 (Reuters) - The Washington Post included the following items on its front page on Wednesday. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

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Fresh worries spread through world markets Tuesday as a crisis of confidence battered more U.S. financial institutions and the chairman of the Federal Reserve issued a sober assessment of U.S. economic woes.

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Wachovia's WB.N stock fell to a 17-year low after an analyst warned that the commercial bank will face two years of losses arising from the credit crisis and a dramatic restatement of troubled assets on its books.

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Sen. Barack Obama holds his biggest advantage of the presidential campaign as the candidate best prepared to fix the nation's ailing economy, but lingering concerns about his readiness to handle international crises are keeping the race competitive, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll.

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Sens. Barack Obama and John McCain shifted their foreign policy focus from the future of U.S. military involvement in Iraq to the deteriorating war in Afghanistan, with both White House hopefuls pledging thousands of additional troops and a large-scale infusion of aid for the Afghan conflict.

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