S&P downgrades of a number of EU nations, as well as difficult talks about a Greek bailout, put pressure on the euro. (Reuters)

The foreign minister of Germany says he still believes Greek debt will sap work. (Reuters)

China’s GDP likely will be a key measure of global financial stress, with both exports and national consumer spending at risk. (Reuters)

Slow PC sales may undermine Microsoft’s (NASDAQ: MSFT) earnings. (Reuters)

Hulu to create its own programs. (Reuters)

The European Central Bank faces risks as it takes on more assets of troubled eurozone banks. (WSJ)

Strikes that may shutter Nigeria’s oil output are spreading. (WSJ)

Eastman Kodak (NYSE: EK) sues Fijifilm over patents. (WSJ)

The study “Discounted Jobs: How Retailers Sell Workers Short” finds that New York’s retail workers make $9.50 an hour. (NYT)

Inefficiencies among EU economies contribute to the growth of troubles in the region. (NYT)

The growth of ultrabooks has become critical to the PC industry. (NYT)

Venezuela will drop out of the  World Bank’s international arbitration body. (NYT)

Investors in Greek debt press to draw Germany and France into the negotiations. (FT)

Poor earnings results from U.S. banks could hurt the perception of an economic recovery. (FT)

Saudi Arabia may let more investors participate in its stock market. (FT)

Rate cuts by the ECB fail to bring down the borrowing costs of area sovereigns. (Bloomberg)

A top analyst at S&P says the pressure on sovereign paper in Europe may get worse. (Bloomberg)

A key analyst drops its estimate of Ireland’s 2012 GDP growth to 0.4% from 1.7% and says the nation will miss targets for the next two years. (Bloomberg)

India’s inflation drops to a two-year low. (Bloomberg)

The International Monetary Fund will try to increase its loan capacity to help with the situation in Europe. (Bloomberg)

The National Retail Federation expects sales to slow to a 3.4 % increase in 2012. (Bloomberg)

AAA reports gas prices are not falling in January. (various)

The China Internet Network Information Center says 513 million Chinese used a microblogging site last year. (BBC)

Douglas A. McIntyre

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