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– Low-wage earners have a little more to celebrate this new year, at least in eight states.

In those states, 2012 means a higher minimum wage, under laws that peg the wage floor to inflation. The increase makes Washington the first state to set its minimum wage higher than $9 an hour.

Why Washington? Why now?

Simple. Washington pegs its minimum wage to the consumer price index, says Paul Sonn of the National Employment Law Project. That means whenever the cost of living increases, so does the minimum wage there.

Nine other states do the same. But Washington has been using that CPI-based formula since 2001, longer than any other state, and that’s why its hourly wage is highest.

Of course enacting such a law is difficult. Most states that have laws tying minimum wages to the consumer price index have done so via ballot initiatives.

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Even though some large and well-off hedge funds will be able to hire this year, that may not be the case for smaller shops in the industry. After failing to bounce back from the financial crisis, some will have to shut down while others look for buyers, Financial News reports.

The hedge fund industry, which now manages more than $2 trillion in assets, has suffered in recent years. The average fund lost 5.3% in 2011, after being up 10.3% in 2010 and 20% in 2009.

More rivals are joining the scene as traders leave firms in the wake of financial reform regulation and start their own shops. Yet investors are still giving their money to larger firms, or those that have more than $5 billion in assets under management.

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Pay no interest at all for 6 months with the Citibank Clear Platinum. 0% p.a. for 6 months interest on balance transfers, 0% p.a. for 6 months (reverts to 11.99% p.a.) interest on purchases and 0% for 6 months thereafter reverts to 21.74% p.a. interest on cash advances. This remarkable offer comes with the standard Citibank features and perks that save you money and make life a little more special. <

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Heres a piece from Smart Money that profiles what they call 401k Millionaires — people who have managed to save $1 million or more in their 401ks.

The piece gets to the heart of what differentiates the 401k Millionaires (which is only 0.2% of all savers) versus the average 401k investor that has a balance of $60,000. They dont have higher incomes and they arent some kind of investing geniuses. Heres what makes them wealthy:

The one characteristic that differentiates the winners from the non-winners here is contribution rate — a high percentage of those million-dollar savers had constant participation and high contribution rates.

In other words, they invested as much as they could for a long period of time. Wow, I wish I had thought of that.

Seriously, this is the path that I have followed.

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Chicago – Everyone agrees stabilization of the housing sector will help the U.S.

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WASHINGTON—World Bank President Robert Zoellick said Wednesday he would step down as scheduled when his term ends in June, setting the stage for a new leader to be named to the international lender in the coming weeks.

Even before Mr. Zoellick’s announcement, the expected opening had already set off speculation around the world about a possible successor.

The bank, which is owned by 187 nations and lends to developing economies, has been led by an American since its creation after World War II. The U.S. is the bank’s largest shareholder.

The Obama administration has assembled a list of candidates for the job but has not settled on a single choice, according to a person familiar with the matter. A

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