The Bottom Line

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The 40 richest people in India are worth a combined $350 billion, more than twice what the group was worth last year.

Forbes

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Chester A. Arthur, president of the United States, employed a personal valet who brushed his clothes, shaved him, and trimmed his fingernails and toenails.

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Asia is four times larger than Europe.

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The average amount of equity that homeowners hold in their homes slipped to barely above 50 percent in the third quarter, if the trend continues in the fourth quarter,as is likely, it will mark the first time that American homeowners owe more than they own sice figures were first compiled in 1945.

Associated Press

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A survey by Prince & Associates found that two-thirds of the middle-class women and half the men polled said they could marry for money. The average base price was $1.5 million. "I'm a little shocked at the numbers," said University of Michigan sociologist Pamela Smock. "it's kind of against the notion of love and soul mates."

The Wall Street Journal

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A key holiday sales barometer, women's apparel sales, is flashing a warning sign. In the first half of the Christmas shopping season, spending on women's clothing was down 6 percent from last year.

The New York Times

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Iran Khodro Industrial Group plans to launch an Islamic car company. Jointly owned by Islamic countries, it "will make Muslems feel they can use a car which belongs to them," the company said.

Financial Times

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For the first time since the 19th century, the average British citizen will have a higher income in 2008 than the average American. Research firm Oxford Economics says the average Briton will earn $46,700, compared to $46,200 per American.

BBCnews

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McDonald's plans to challenge Starbucks head-on by introducing 14,000 in-restaurant coffee bars staffed by baristas, according to internal company documents.

The Wall Street Journal

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The low-budget film Juno hit #1 at the box office last week,after steadily picking up steam since its Dec. 5 release. With $55.9 million earned so far, Juno is on track to be Fox Searchlight's highest-grossing film ever; its 2004 hit Sideways pulled in $71.5 million.

Marketwatch

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Las Vegas' wedding industry is slumping with wedding license applications at a 10-year low. Observers blame the Clark County licensing office, which last year cut back its hours.

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China last year became the world's largest gold producer, topping South Africa, which had held the top spot for more than a century.

The Wall Street Journal

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A new study of the economics of prostitution finds that prostitutes try to charge clients according to their ability to pay. According to the University of Chicago study, prostitutes tend to negotiate price with black clients, but quote a fixed fee to white ones.

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Out of $97 billion in gift cards purchased last year nearly $8 billion worth have gone unused, said researchers TownGroup

Business Week

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By the end of this year, for the first time, more than 50 percent of the world's population of 6.6 billion will own a moble phone, a U.N. agency reported.

The Wall street Journal

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Retailers are cracking down on shoppers who return items such as party dresses and plasma TVs after one use. Stores have started keeping files on known "wardrobes," as the fickle customers are known.

The Boston Globe

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Under a "non disparagement agreement" he signed last year, Lazard Freres CEO Bruce Wasserstein is barred from publicly speaking ill of the firm for the rest of his life.

BusinessWeek

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Due to the surging price of gold, each gold-plated Oscar statuette handed out at this year's Academy Awards ceremony cost $500 apiece, up from $400 last year.

Financial Times

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The high price of oil is spurring the airline industry to search for alternative energy sources. Boeing recently flew a 747 fueled with a mix of 80 percent conventional jet fuel and 20 percent fuel derived from babassu and coconut oils.

The Boston Globe

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Eighteen percent of workers borrowed money from their 401k or other retirement account last year, up from 11 percent in 2006

The New York Times