Wednesday morning links

TOP STORIES
Retail sales slump 2.7 percent in December - Reuters
Death knell for Citigroup's 'supermarket' model - AP
Banks in Need of Even More Bailout Money - New York Times
Citigroup, Morgan Stanley merge brokerages - AP
Nortel files for bankruptcy protection - Globe & Mail
Chrysler in asset sale talks, but Renault denies - AP
Barclays jobs cuts rise to 4,600 in past week - Reuters
World in mad rush for Gold coins - Commodity Online

MARKETS/INVESTING
Oil rises towards $39 on Saudi cuts - Reuters
Gold Gains in London as Rising Oil, Weaker Dollar Spurs Demand - Bloomberg
Fix your portfolio - CNN/Money
Princeton, Harvard Lead Rush to Sell Debt as Losses Erode Funds - Bloomberg
Pension Losses Could Whack 2009 Corporate Profits - Time
Billionaires Burn Israeli Savers on New York, U.K. Land Deals - Bloomberg

ECONOMY
Retail sales plunge 2.7% in December - MarketWatch
U.S. December Import Prices Fall 4.2%, Down 1.1% Excluding Oil - Bloomberg
Democrats See Progress on Proposal for Economy - Washington Post
Economic crisis hits city recycling - Christian Science Monitor
Some States in a Pinch May Raise Gasoline Tax - NY Times

INTERNATIONAL
Dubai Developer Delays Work on World’s Tallest Tower - Bloomberg
Flow of Dollars to China Slows - NY Times
U.K. Real-Estate Companies Need to Raise $20 Billion - Bloomberg
Gas-starved EU nations seek end to energy crisis - AP
Oil Slump Forces Rich Arab Countries to Run Deficits - Bloomberg
China plans tax cuts, subsidies for auto industry - AP
Consumers' outlook grim, poll finds - Globe & Mail
Thai Rate Cut More Than Expected on Politics, Slump - Bloomberg
German economic growth halved in 2008 - AP

HOUSING
Mortgage applications up as refinancing jumps - Reuters
Foreclosure Activity Resumes Climb in California - HousingWire
Housing-market hope - Winston-Salem Journal
Local home prices drop in December - DC Examiner

FED/TREASURY/BANKING
Fed May Find Expectations Defy Easy Managing - Baum, Bloomberg
Geithner Questioned on Tax Returns - NY Times
Fed Wants New Effort to Cleanse Banks Hobbled by Toxic Assets - Bloomberg
In Michigan, Bank Lends Little of Its Bailout Funds - NY Times

INTERESTING
Downturn makes taking a vacation a dilemma - Philly.com
Parachuting investor caught in Fla. after fleeing - AP