European stock markets rose to their highest since the 2008 financial crisis on Wednesday, helped by signs the U.S. economy is improving and expectations of more pledges of support for growth from major central banks. The European Central Bank, the Bank of England and the Bank of Japan are all expected to stick to ultra-easy
More
Hong Kong and China shares posted solid gains on Wednesday, with the Chinese financial and telecom sectors strong as investors cheered comments made by policymakers at the country's annual parliamentary meetings. ZTE surged on news reports that the world's fourth-biggest handset maker had entered a strategic collaboration with Intel for a new platform that could
More
Several top Czech bank websites came under hacker attack on Wednesday, shutting down their internet banking and other online services. The online banking websites of Erste Group Bank's Ceska Sporitelna, KBC's CSOB and Societe Generale's Komercni Banka, along with the sites of some smaller banks, were affected, the banks said. "Komercni Banka registered a DDoS
More
* Eurozone OK on bailout, as Sarris fights for deposits * Finance Minister Michalis Sarris has warned that all the talk about a “bail-in” plan for a writedown of Cyprus bank deposits has spooked depositors, with January data suggesting that about 2 bln euros have already left the country. Eurozone finance ministers agreed late on
More
The government should install a special tax on capital gains from bank deposits to finance the restructuring of its banking sector, Central Bank Governor Panicos Demetriades was quoted as saying. "Taxing 10% of interest income for example would generate a substantial amount of revenue for the government," Demetriades told the Wall Street Journal in an
More
Asian shares extended gains on Wednesday while U.S. Treasuries and gold were capped as Wall Street's record close spurred a shift into riskier assets amid signs of a continuing U.S. economic recovery and globally accommodative monetary conditions. European markets are seen easing from a rally, with financial spreadbetters predicting London's FTSE 100, Paris's CAC-40 and
More
Minister of Finance Michalis Sarris has dismissed once again the possibility of a haircut on bank deposits in Cyprus, stressing that the issue is not on the table of negotiations with the Troika (European Commission, European Central Bank, International Monetary Fund). In statements to journalists after the conclusion of a broad meeting on the economy
More
Vice President of the European Commission, Olli Rehn, has said that the Troika works for the achievement of an agreement on a Cyprus bailout in March. In statements Tuesday to the press after the conclusion of the ECOFIN Council, Rehn referred to the Eurogroup meeting which took place Monday in Brussels. He noted that after
More
Venezuelans mourned the death of Hugo Chavez and prepared on Wednesday for his body to lie in state as attention turns to a new election to succeed the socialist leader after 14 years of tumultuous and divisive rule. The 58-year-old president died on Tuesday after a two-year battle with cancer that was first detected
More
Ireland and Portugal want up to 15 more years to pay back loans to the EU to ease their return to financial markets, but sources said on Monday that while an extension is likely it may not be as long as they want. The head of the Eurogroup meeting of finance ministers said late on
More