The U.S. economy stumbled badly in the first half of 2011 and came dangerously close to contracting in the January-March period, raising the risk of a recession if a stand-off over the
* Moody's issues negative review * Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodrigo Zapatero could call early general elections for November, four months early, the website of El Mundo newspaper said on
Libya's rebels said their military commander was shot dead in an incident that remained shrouded in mystery, pointing either to divisions within the movement trying to oust Muammar Gaddafi or to an
Saboteurs blew up an oil export pipeline near the central Syrian city of Homs on Friday, the official Syrian news agency said. The explosion caused an unspecified amount of oil to leak
* Yen hits new 4-month low vs dollar * Tokyo stocks fell on Friday, losing ground for a third straight day as the deadlock over raising the U.S. debt ceiling pushed
Global financial markets are likely to remain "awful" for some time to come, the finance director of British investment bank and brokerage Evolution Group said on Friday. "It's pretty awful at the
* Compromise still seen possible over weekend * U.S. Republican leaders will scramble to rescue their budget deficit-cutting plan on Friday after conservatives mounted a rebellion that heaped uncertainty on efforts
* Gold consolidates gains after hitting a record this week * Asian equities slipped on Friday as investors braced for more volatility after lawmakers failed to make progress in breaking a
* Economists, IMF officials question Greek rescue package * Italy's borrowing costs soared at a closely watched bond auction on Thursday as investors worried by the euro zone debt crisis and an
Economic sentiment in the euro zone worsened more than expected this month with optimism fading in all sectors, data showed on Thursday, signalling slower expansion of the region's economy in the second
