AP: Banks said severing ties with NKorea By JEANNINE AVERSA 36 minutes ago The financial noose is tightening around North Korea as international banks sever ties with the nation — a move championed by the United States, a top Treasury Department official says. The United States has accused Pyongyang of spreading weapons and missile technology to other countries, counterfeiting U.S. currency and trafficking drugs. It wants to see the reclusive, communist-led regime financially incapacitated. "There is sort of a voluntary coalition of financial institutions saying that they don't want to handle this business anymore and that is causing financial isolation...