The Nikkei stock average extended losses in afternoon trading on Monday, touching a five-month low as worries about the U.S. economy offset signs that the Japanese authorities stand ready to quell any further yen strength. The index fell as low as 8642.79, breaking below the previous five-month low of 8,656 set on August 9, before

European stocks looked set to extend four weeks of losses on Monday, tracking jittery Asian shares lower, while gold shot to new highs as investors worried about the sluggish U.S. economic outlook and Europe's festering debt crisis. Major European benchmark indexes were expected to open as much as 1.1% lower, tracking Friday's losses on Wall

Pressure on Germany and France to take radical action on the euro zone debt crisis mounted on Friday, as financial markets sagged further and Belgium added its support to calls for the region to issue debt jointly. Belgian Finance Minister Didier Reynders said the bloc should issue common euro bonds and expand its bailout fund

Greece's four largest banks are likely to participate in smaller rival Proton Bank's capital boost, the country's central bank said on Friday. The move would help keep Proton afloat after the bank disclosed earlier this month that it was under investigation by the central bank for possible violations of the country's money-laundering laws related to

Russia said it had lost track of a newly-launched, multi-million-dollar telecommunications satellite on Thursday, the latest in a series of setbacks that have dogged its space industry. The $265-million Express AM-4 satellite, described by its makers as the most powerful satellite ever built in Europe, launched late on Wednesday aboard a Proton-M rocket from the

Austria proposed on Friday linking demands from euro zone states for collateral on loans to Greece to how much protection each country's financial sector will secure in a parallel private sector bailout for Athens. Finance Minister Maria Fekter said she hoped the proposal, sent to other euro zone members, would defuse tensions over a go-it-alone

Euro zone member states will have to decide if a deal between Finland and Greece on collateral for financial support to Athens is in line with the agreement on the bailout agreed last month, the European Commission said on Friday. Euro area member states had agreed at the July summit to allow a collateral agreement

Greece's economy will shrink by over 4.5% this year, the country's finance minister said on Friday, adding that a new bailout deal for the troubled euro zone member would not be completed before mid-October. After Finland secured a collateral on loans to Greece, Austria, the Netherlands and Slovakia said they wanted the same, complicating efforts