GOOD DAY FOR: Black gold, after oil giant Exxon Mobil took the No. 1 spot on the Fortune 500 list from Wal-Mart, which slipped to No. 2 amid the slump in retail sales. Exxon earned $45.2 billion on $442.85 billion in revenue, a 19 percent annual jump; Wal-Mart earned $13.4 billion on $405.6 billion in revenue, a 7 percent rise. Overall earnings for the top 500 U.S. companies plummeted 85 percent last year, the biggest drop in the Fortune 500 list’s 55-year history. (AP in USA Today)
BAD DAY FOR: Fatherhood, after police in Mumbai started an investigation into allegations that the father of “Slumdog Millionaire” child star Rubina Ali tried to sell the girl for about $290,000. Rubina’s mom reported the accusation after seeing a report on TV that her ex-husband was shopping the 8-year-old around. Rubina’s dad denies the report, based on a sting operation by British tabloid News of the World. (Reuters)
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