Brent crude oil edged up towards $115 a barrel on Friday, after falling more than a dollar in the previous session, supported by storm threats and uncertainty about U.S. President Barack Obama's latest plan to revive the world's largest economy. Brent for October delivery was on track for a weekly gain of more than 2%,

Asian stocks fell on Friday as a $447 bln jobs package from U.S. President Barack Obama failed to entice investors back into equities amid concerns that political wrangling could see it watered down. Market confidence has been fragile after Western central banks failed to offer any fresh stimulus plans, and a looming deadline for bond

The euro bounced off a two-month low against the dollar on Friday but the risk of a break below its July trough is seen rising after a deepening debt crisis forced the European Central Bank to drop its tightening policy bias, a key driver in the euro's rally this year. The market showed a mostly

Investors in Greek government debt across the world tell regulators on Friday how they will participate in a bond swap designed to give the troubled nation more time to emerge from a debt crisis, with officials expecting a take-up of about 70%. Athens has given banks and insurers in 57 countries until September 9 to

The euro zone needs to get ahead of the curve in tackling its sovereign debt crisis and above all prevent it infecting Italy or else face disaster, the finance minister of Poland, current holder of the EU's rotating presidency, said on Thursday. Poland, largest of the European Union's new member states, does not belong to

Greece ruled out quitting the euro on Thursday, shrugging off warnings by its biggest creditor Germany and yet another set of bad economic figures showing it is struggling under the weight of EU/IMF-imposed austerity. Anger at Greece's failure to meet fiscal targets that are a condition for its international bailout is nearing breaking point in

A French court handed out a 6,000 euro ($8,421) suspended fine to John Galliano on Thursday after finding him guilty of anti-Semitic behaviour , marking the end in a fall from grace for the former head designer of fashion house Dior. For Galliano, whose worth is estimated in the millions of dollars, the penalty —

French virtual mobile operator Virgin Mobile, long a bit player in Europe's third largest telecoms market, aims to grab a bigger slice of the pie by pushing smartphones and launching its first all-inclusive bundle of mobile and fixed broadband. Chief Executive Geoffroy Roux de Bezieux said in an interview that Virgin Mobile had crossed the

World food prices remain high despite small falls in the past two months, a senior economist at the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) said on Thursday. "Fundamentals are tight… so prices remain high," FAO's senior economist and grain analyst Abdolreza Abbassian told Reuters Insider in an interview adding that corn crop outlook was