Carlos Slim

The richest man in the world remains Carlos Slim, according to Forbes magazine's list of billionaires. The number of billionaires increased by 199 in the past year, according to the magazine, but it was the Mexican telecom magnate Slim, who kept the No. 1 spot for the second year by increasing his worth by $20.5 billion to $74 billion. Photos: Some of the richest people in the world Microsoft Corp. co-founder Bill Gates, who is worth $56 billion, is No. 2 on the list.

MEXICO CITY - In an unusual legal action against the world's richest man, Mexico is suing the telecommunications giant Telmex for charging allegedly illegal fees that were tacked on to what are already some of the highest phone rates among developed countries. The lawsuit, filed in civil court by the federal consumer protection agency, aims to end a set of fees and, in what may be a first in this country, recover money for millions of telephone users. Telmex provides about 80% of fixed telephone lines in Mexico.

MEXICO CITY -- Carlos Slim's telecommunications empire, Telmex, is poised to get a new shot at realizing its long-held goal of entering Mexico's television market after a regulatory board this week approved rules that may allow the world's richest man to launch a for-pay TV channel.  Mexico's television market is almost completely dominated by the duopoly of media giant Televisa and  TV Azteca, which together control about 95% of what viewers see and hear on the country's airwaves.

MEXICO CITY -- Carlos Slim's telecommunications empire, Telmex, is poised to get a new shot at realizing its long-held goal of entering Mexico's television market after a regulatory board this week approved rules that may allow the world's richest man to launch a for-pay TV channel.  Mexico's television market is almost completely dominated by the duopoly of media giant Televisa and  TV Azteca, which together control about 95% of what viewers see and hear on the country's airwaves.

MEXICO CITY - In an unusual legal action against the world's richest man, Mexico is suing the telecommunications giant Telmex for charging allegedly illegal fees that were tacked on to what are already some of the highest phone rates among developed countries. The lawsuit, filed in civil court by the federal consumer protection agency, aims to end a set of fees and, in what may be a first in this country, recover money for millions of telephone users. Telmex provides about 80% of fixed telephone lines in Mexico.

New York Times Co. said Monday that it had reached an agreement for $250 million in financing from companies controlled by billionaire Carlos Slim Helu to help the newspaper publisher meet debt payments as credit markets dry up and the newspaper industry confronts plummeting ad revenue. Banco Inbursa and Inmobiliaria Carso will issue senior unsecured notes due in 2015 with detachable warrants, New York Times said.

When he was 12, Carlos Slim Helu created a ledger so he could record exactly how he spent every centavo of the five-peso allowance his father gave him each week. That childhood self-discipline underpins a career that has made Slim, now a gray-bearded 59, Latin America's richest man. Forbes magazine estimates his fortune at $8 billion--making him the 27th-richest man in the world. But parsimony isn't the whole story. In a rare interview, Slim reminisced recently about another, very different early lesson from his father.

Billionaire investor Carlos Slim received permission from state regulators in the U.S. to boost his stake in Global Crossing Ltd. to as much as 20%.

Carlos Slim, Latin America's richest man, stepped down as chairman of the board of Telefonos de Mexico and handed over the responsibilities to his eldest son, Carlos Slim Domit. Carlos Slim Domit, 37, formerly co-chairman of Telmex with his father, takes over immediately, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. His father, 64, will remain honorary lifetime chairman of the company he has run for 14 years, the filing said.

Saks Inc. shareholder Carlos Slim increased his stake in the retailer to 13% to become its second-largest shareholder. Saks shares rose 66 cents to $17.56 on the New York Stock Exchange.

SACRAMENTO - A prepaid cellular company controlled by Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim is taking fire as it moves to expand in the lucrative California market. TracFone Wireless Inc., which has more than 21 million users in the United States, is the country's biggest player in the fast-growing business of selling low-cost cellphones and prepaid minutes - often to low-income customers. These phones, typically costing users as little as $20 for a phone and 60 minutes of use, appeal to many customers who don't want or can't afford to sign yearlong or multiyear contracts.

Carlos Slim, the world's richest person, is confronting a mounting backlash that's coming from the same parts of Latin American that made him wealthy. Authorities in several countries are moving to rein in his telecommunications empire. A wave of telecommunications regulation has swept the area in the last four months. Mexico's new president pledged last week to stimulate competition against Slim. In Brazil, institutions that monitor the phone industry are also gaining teeth, while populist politicians in countries such as Argentina and Colombia are spurring rule changes.

Mexican tycoon Carlos Slim lost nearly $500 million over the weekend but remains the world's richest person. Microsoft Corp. co-founder Bill Gates, who ranks second, closed the gap a bit because he only lost about $100 million. The daily financial gyrations in the net worth of the world's richest people now can be followed like stock prices or baseball standings through the new Bloomberg Billionaires Index. "The index is a dynamic measure of the world's wealthy based on changes in markets, the economy and Bloomberg reporting," the financial news company said.

Mexican tycoon Carlos Slim lost nearly $500 million over the weekend, but remains the world's richest person. Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, who ranks second, closed the gap a bit because he only lost about $100 million. The daily financial gyrations of the net worth of the world's richest people now can be followed like stock prices or baseball standings, with the unveiling of the Bloomberg Billionaires Index . "The index is a dynamic measure of the world's wealthy based on changes in markets, the economy and Bloomberg reporting," the financial news company said.

Mañana Forever Mexico and the Mexicans Jorge G. Castañeda Alfred A. Knopf: 294 pp., $27.95 Mexicans, like their Spanish forebears, love to quote proverbs as a way of underscoring eternal truths and imparting folk wisdom to younger generations. Jorge Castañeda cites one of these popular adages not once, but twice, in his timely, perceptive new book, " Mañana Forever? Mexico and the Mexicans," to illustrate what he believes are some of the cynical, corrupt and backward-looking attitudes that are preventing his countrymen from living up to their vast potential.

The richest man in the world remains Carlos Slim, according to Forbes magazine's list of billionaires. The number of billionaires increased by 199 in the past year, according to the magazine, but it was the Mexican telecom magnate Slim, who kept the No. 1 spot for the second year by increasing his worth by $20.5 billion to $74 billion. Photos: Some of the richest people in the world Microsoft Corp. co-founder Bill Gates, who is worth $56 billion, is No. 2 on the list.

Carlos Slim Domit, chairman of Mexico's Telefonos de Mexico telecommunications monopoly, has purchased $288 million in shares -- or 2.8% -- of Los Angeles-based Univision Communications Inc., according to a regulatory filing on Wednesday. Slim's stock purchase comes as Univision, the nation's largest Spanish-language media company, is weighing a likely sale. Two months ago, Univision's board -- led by Los Angeles billionaire A.

Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim and his family have accumulated 9.1% of Global Crossing Ltd.'s common stock, the U.S. fiber optic network operator said Monday. Reasons behind the purchase were not immediately clear. Slim, Latin America's richest man who has acquired a slew of telecommunications assets throughout the region, is known for his ability to turn battered companies around. He could not be reached for comment.

Carlos Slim remains the world's richest person for a second year with estimated assets of $74 billion, according to Forbes magazine's annual global ranking of billionaires. The net worth of Mexico's Slim, 71, whose holdings include the largest mobile phone operator in the Americas, rose $20.5 billion. Bill Gates, 55, chairman of Microsoft Corp., was second again as his net worth rose $3 billion, to $56 billion. Warren Buffett, 80, chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., held on to third place with $50 billion.

New York Times Co. said Monday that it had reached an agreement for $250 million in financing from companies controlled by billionaire Carlos Slim Helu to help the newspaper publisher meet debt payments as credit markets dry up and the newspaper industry confronts plummeting ad revenue. Banco Inbursa and Inmobiliaria Carso will issue senior unsecured notes due in 2015 with detachable warrants, New York Times said.