Greece and private bondholders will begin thrashing out a deal on Thursday to halve its public debt, a key pillar of a bailout plan to save the country from bankruptcy and ejection from the euro zone, sources said on Tuesday. While politicians debate in parliament the degree of support they are prepared to give a

A senior member of German Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservative bloc called on Britain on Tuesday to be less self-centered in its relationship with Europe despite not being a member of the single European currency. "The British are not members of the currency union but they are members of Europe and they also have a responsibility

Asian shares fell on Tuesday, as a rise in euro zone bond yields reflected lingering doubts about the ability of politicians in Italy and Greece to push through painful reforms to resolve their debt crises and win market confidence. Jittery European credit markets also hurt sentiment in Asia, sharply widening the spreads on the iTraxx

Prime Minister-designate Mario Monti meets the leaders of Italy's biggest two parties on Tuesday to discuss the "many sacrifices" needed to reverse a collapse in market confidence that is driving an ever deepening euro zone debt crisis. Global equity markets and the euro slid on Monday on doubts Monti and Greece's new leader would take

Greece's conservatives vowed on Monday to reject any new austerity measures in return for the aid that is keeping Athens from bankruptcy, signalling a new coalition government may not enjoy the kind of cross-party support its lenders demand. New technocrat Prime Minister Lucas Papademos said Greece had no choice but to remain inside the euro

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Monday that Europe could be living through its toughest hour since World War Two as new leaders in Italy and Greece rushed to form governments and limit the damage from the euro zone debt crisis. Financial markets on Monday took heart on relief that a key Italian bond auction

The euro zone has to tread a narrow path sown with landmines in the next few weeks to survive perhaps the most dangerous phase of its sovereign debt crisis, policymakers and bankers say. European Union governments have until a summit on Dec. 9 to come up with the outlines of a much bolder and more