Economy

Italy easily sells bonds despite downgrade
Italy has easily sold €7.75 billion ($10 billion) in 12-month bonds, though at slightly higher interest rates, in the first test of market sentiment ...
Spain raises another $7.5 billion at lower cost
Spain has sold €5.8 billion ($7.5 billion) in short-term debt at a lower cost, in a further indication that investors are less fearful over the state ...
Munich Re profit rebounds on lower disaster losses
German reinsurer Munich Re saw profit more than quadruple last year as payouts for natural disasters fell and the company moved past losses on Greek ...
German inflation hits lowest rate in over 2 years
Official figures show that inflation in Germany, Europe's largest economy, fell to an annual rate of 1.5 percent in February — the lowest in more than ...
EU bans cosmetics with animal-tested ingredients
The European Union banned the sale of new cosmetic products containing ingredients tested on animals with immediate effect Monday. "This is a great ...
Cash-strapped Greece puts govt buildings on block
Greece's cash-strapped government detailed Monday its plans to sell 28 state-owned buildings on long-term lease, including tax offices, ministry ...
Prediction market Intrade shuts amid probe
Online prediction market Intrade has shut down all trading activity immediately, saying it is investigating recently-discovered events that "may ...
Old sausage found at Polish meat plant
A local veterinary inspector has been suspended in northern Poland after evidence was found of old sausages and meat stored at a processing plant.
Greece says no Cypriot request for bank cash boost
A Greek official says Cyprus has not asked Greece for help in boosting its battered banking system. Government spokesman Simos Kedikoglou said Monday ...
Oil price down on Fed policy concerns
The price of oil fell slightly Monday after strong jobs growth in the U.S. sparked speculation of an earlier end to the Federal Reserve's loose ...
Latvia enjoys strongest economic growth in EU
Latvia's economy grew 5.6 percent last year — the best performance among the 27-country European Union — thanks to robust trade and manufacturing.
Portugal endures worst recession in 37 years
Portugal's statistics agency says the economy contracted 3.2 percent last year — its sharpest annual downturn since 1975. Portugal is enacting broad ...
Dutch bankruptcies hit record in February
More Dutch companies declared bankruptcy in February than at any time since records began in 1981. The country's Central Bureau for Statistics also ...
Repair starts on runway in idled Polish airport
A spokeswoman says repair has started on the runway at Modlin airport near Warsaw, idled since December due to surface cracks. Edyta Mikolajczyk said ...
Total restarts production after North Sea gas leak
French energy group Total says it is slowly restarting gas production in an area of the North Sea where a well sprang a leak nearly a year ago. A leak ...
German exports start the year strongly
Official figures show that German exports began the year strongly with a 1.4 percent rise in January over the previous month. Exports rose to €91.
Asia stocks rise after strong US jobs report
A strong U.S. jobs report helped propel Asian stock markets higher on Monday. The U.S. government reported that the unemployment rate fell to 7.
Bomb explodes in Athens, no one injured
Police say a bomb has exploded outside a package shipping company in Athens, causing considerable damage but no injuries. Sunday's explosion left a ...
Class of 2012: Young Spaniards launch startups
In a cramped office in downtown Madrid, five young architects who found themselves jobless in Spain's wrenching economic crisis sit almost elbow to ...
2 Greek officials quit after being charged
The head of Greece's privatization agency and the general secretary of the Finance Ministry have resigned after being charged with dereliction of duty ...
Thousands of Greeks protest planned gold mine
More than 10,000 people have taken to the streets of Greece's second largest city to protest a planned gold mine they see as an environmental risk.
German state employees win 5.6 percent raise
Some 800,000 employees of Germany's state governments have won a pay increase totaling 5.6 percent over two years. The pay deal for employees ...
Hedge fund manager charged in US captured in Italy
A fugitive German hedge fund manager was arrested Friday at an Italian art gallery on charges filed in Los Angeles that accuse him of orchestrating ...
Fitch downgrades Italy on election uncertainty
Fitch Ratings Agency on Friday downgraded Italy's credit rating to BBB+ from A- with a warning of a further downgrade, citing the uncertainty created ...
Payrolls shore up markets at end of historic week
Markets across Europe and Asia made decent gains Friday, bringing to an end what has been a historic week that was capped with the release of ...