Israel’s Shimon Peres is in Cyprus for a two-day official visit where he is expected to discuss natural gas exploration and the construction of a joint processing plant, as well as Turkey’s threats in the eastern Mediterranean. He was received at Larnaca airport by Foreign Minister Erato Kozakou Marcoullis. Peres will sign four bilateral agreements
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The leaders of Germany and France told Greece on Wednesday it would not receive another cent in European aid until it decides whether it wants to stay in the euro zone. They also made clear that saving the euro was ultimately more important to them than rescuing Greece. After emergency talks with Greek Prime Minister
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Asian shares, the euro, commodities and the Australian dollar all fell on Thursday as fears that Europe's debt crisis could unleash financial chaos prompted investors to shed riskier assets in favour of the relative safety of the dollar. U.S. stock futures also fell, retreating from a Wall Street rebound on Wednesday, as leaders of the
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France's biggest listed bank BNP Paribas reported a 72% slide in quarterly earnings on Thursday after booking a bigger-than-expected 2 billion euro ($2.8 billion) charge on Greek debt and sold billions in eurozone bonds to cut risk. The charge equated to 60% of BNP's sovereign exposure to the crisis-hit Greek economy and reflected last month's
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Apple Inc on Wednesday said it will release a software update to its iOS 5 operating system, acknowledging some customer complaints on the performance of the new iPhone 4S battery. "A small number of customers have reported lower-than-expected battery life on iOS 5 devices," An Apple spokesman said. "We have found a few bugs
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* Minister – Kassinis battle does not seem to let up * The island’s ambitious venture to prospect for natural gas and rescue the troubled Cyprus government from financial collapse seems to be headed for catastrophe before the exploration drilling even produces any tangible result, as the Minister in charge and her subordinate are locked
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Moody's Investors Service has downgraded to Baa3 from Baa2 the rating of Israel Electric Corporation and the provisional rating of the USD 2 bln Global Medium Term Note (MTN) programme to (P)Baa3 from (P)Baa2. The outlook for the ratings is negative. The rating agency said its action reflects an erosion of IEC's financial flexibility, with
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Cyprus is taking all the necessary steps to manage the difficult situation faced by its financial system, Central Bank Governor Athanasios Orphanides said on Tuesday. Cypriot banks' heavy exposure to Greek sovereign debt, seen at high risk of default, has been cited as a concern by credit ratings agencies which have downgraded the island's sovereign
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. BY DR. JIM LEONTIADES The Cyprus International Institute of Management Public unrest in Greece has reached boiling point. After three years of austerity the only word from the government is that things will get worse. The fact that the country has been saved from insolvency does not appear to impress the general public. They
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. In the efforts of the powers-that-be to have full control over all matters related to energy, they have succeeded in once again demolishing what little trust and confidence had remained in the Cyprus public system. The ongoing feud between the Energy Service Director and his political superior, the Minister of Commerce and Industry (who
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