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• Fitch Warns of US Downgrade Over Debt Fight

  

  Failure to raise the debt ceiling within a "timely" manner would see the United States' sovereign ratings put under formal review with "highly uncertain" consequences, rating agency Fitch warned U.S. policymakers Tuesday.

• Younger Americans Have More Credit-Card Debt Problems: Study

  

  American credit card holders in their late 20s and early 30s have more debt than older consumers, repay it more slowly and risk dying in debt if they don't curb their spending habits.

• Retail Sales Get Auto Boost; Inflation Remains Tame

  

  Retail sales rose more than expected in December while wholesale prices remained low, suggesting inflation is in check.

• Dell in Talks to Go Private, Shares Surge

  

  Dell is in talks with private equity firms on a potential buyout, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters, confirming reports that sent shares in the world's No. 3 PC maker soaring 13 percent to nearly a eight-month high.

• Wal-Mart Plans to Hire Any Veteran Who Wants a Job

  

  Wal-Mart, the nation's largest retailer, plans to hire every veteran who wants a job, provided that the veterans have left the military in the previous year and did not receive a dishonorable discharge.

• Obama: Congress Must Hike Debt Ceiling or Else

  

  President Obama warned Congress on Monday that it must raise the debt ceiling or risk a "self-inflicted wound on the economy."

• How Obamacare Changes Health Benefits This Year

  

  A preview of new out-of-pocket costs and newfangled ways you'll be getting your medicine as employers get ready for Obamacare to start in earnest.

• Startup Plans Lean, Green 84 MPG Machine for 2014

  

  Elio Motors plans to roll out a two-seater car that gets 84 miles per gallon in 2014.

• Dell Buyout Has '50-50' Chance: Billionaire Ross

  

  There's a "50-50 chance" that Dell would be taken private, PE billionaire Wilbur Ross told CNBC.

• Obama’s ‘Crazy’ Spending Must Be Stopped: Norquist

  

  There will be a four-year struggle to rein in President Barack Obama's crazy spending, tax advocate Grover Norquist told CNBC's "Squawk on the Street" on Monday.

• Markets, Public Can Be Confident: Fed's Evans

  

  The U.S. economy is expected to grow by 2.5 percent in 2013, improving to 3.5 percent growth in 2014, top Fed official Charles Evans said on Monday.

• Lockheed Struggling to Deliver F-35 Jet

  

  Lockheed Martin Corp's new F-35 fighter jet has completed over a third of its planned flight tests, but it is still facing problems with the helmet needed to fly the plane, software development and weapons integration, according to a report by the Pentagon's chief weapons tester.

• Apple Cuts Orders for iPhone 5 Parts: Reports

  

  Apple has cut orders for LCD screens and other parts for the iPhone 5 this quarter due to weak demand, the Nikkei reported.

• Time to Tidy Up! It's National Clean Off Your Desk Day

  

  If we didn't have so much else to worry about perhaps we could focus on the fact that we are a nation of messy desks. How messy are we? I asked you to send photos, and you did.

• Did Obama Just Take Default Off the Table?

  

  Obama lists lots of things will have to be cut if the debt ceiling isn't lifted. But payments on government bonds aren't one of them.

• Payroll Tax Hike Likely to Take Bite Out of Economy

  

  The sting from higher taxes in your first 2013 paycheck is also going to sting the economy this year, particularly in the first quarter.

• More Americans 75 and Older Keep Working

  

  Sixty-five is the normal retirement age, but many Americans are working much later in life, and not just because they need the money.

• Number of US Working Poor Families Grows as Wealth Gap Widens

  

  The number of U.S. families struggling with poverty despite parents being employed continued to grow in 2011 as more people returned to work but mostly at lower-paying service jobs.

• New York Has Gun Deal, With Focus on Mental Ills

  

  Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo and legislative leaders tentatively agreed on Monday on a broad package of changes to gun laws that would expand the state’s ban on assault weapons and would include new measures to keep guns away from the mentally ill. The NYT reports.

• Oracle Updates Java, Security Experts Say Bugs Remain

  

  Oracle released an update to its Java software on Sunday, but experts said the update fails to protect PCs from attack by hackers intent on committing crimes.