AMERICA, it appears, will go over the fiscal cliff after all, if only for a few days. But if all goes as planned, the worst of the cliff, a withering combination of tax increases and spending cuts, will be avoided.

A deal nearing completion in the Senate would make permanent the tax cuts first enacted by George Bush in 2001 and 2003 and due to expire tonight, except for the wealthy. The marginal rate for individuals earning more than $400,000 and couples earning more than $450,000 would rise from 35% to its pre-2001 rate of 39.6%, while deductions would be curbed for some people earning as little as $250,000. Estate taxes would go up, but not to pre-2001 levels, while rates on capital gains and dividends, now 15%, would go up to 20%, still less than their pre-2001 rates.

Read Here – The Economist