WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) – Orders for goods produced in U.S. factories rose 1.8% in December, the Commerce Department said Monday. Economists surveyed by MarketWatch expected orders to increase by 2.3%, largely because of higher orders for commercial and military aircraft. Orders for durable goods – products meant to last at least three years – advanced 4.3% in December. Yet orders for nondurable goods such as food and clothing dropped 0.3%. In November, factory orders were revised down slightly to show a 0.3% decline.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Monday that he’s ready to take the risk of being his country’s first astronaut sent into space as part of its goal of a manned space flight.”I’m ready to be the first Iranian to sacrifice myself for our country’s scientists,” the official IRNA news agency quoted him as saying in an address to space scientists in Tehran.

With one year to go before the Sochi Winter Olympic Games, disruptions in the Russian resort city are causing friction and the budget could soar above $50 billion. The gamble that may either payoff or cause long-term financial burden for short term economic gain. Failure is not an alternative yet the consequences could be devastating.

A top Iranian official visiting Damascus says Israel will regret its “latest aggression” on Syria and that the entire Muslim world should be ready to defend the Syrian people.

Sincerely, Philip Magnoli- My Friends call me Don Filippo- The FX Specialist-www.donfilippo.ca

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