Portugal's parliament is expected to reject the government's latest austerity measures on Wednesday, setting the stage for the possible collapse of the minority Socialist administration a day before a European summit. Prime Minister Jose Socrates has said he will resign if the plan is defeated. He has said its rejection would force the debt-laden couuntry

The Japanese government on Wednesday estimated the direct damage from a deadly earthquake and tsunami that struck the country's northeast this month at 16-25 trillion yen ($185-308 billion), making it the world's costliest natural disaster. It said the estimate covered damage to roads, homes, factories and other infrastructure and eclipses the $100 billion loss tally

Japanese shares fell on Wednesday after the previous day's four-percent rally, while government bond futures edged higher as investors paused to assess the economic damage from this month's earthquake and tsunami and ensuing nuclear crisis. After optimism that conditions were slowly improving at the quake-hit nuclear plant in northeastern Japan drew foreign investors on Tuesday,

* NBG profits seen down 64% Alpha Bank, Greece's third-largest lender, on Tuesday reported a sharp drop in 2010 earnings, hurt by higher bad debt provisions and weak loan growth as the country's recession deepened. Alpha's net profit fell 75.5% to 85.6 mln euros, in line with market expectations, after a 61.8 mln euro one-off

* Sony may shift production abroad * Toyota, Honda suspend until Sunday Sony cut output at five more plants and Toyota delayed restarting assembly lines, as the global supply of parts and products began to feel the full impact of Japan's catastrophic earthquake. Global electronics and autos companies have been hardest hit by the turmoil,

* Ministers reach deal on ESM, no Irish debt relief European central bankers have signalled they stand ready to raise interest rates next month despite uncertainty linked to Japan's nuclear crisis and the ongoing struggles of euro members Greece, Ireland and Portugal. Euro zone finance ministers meeting in Brussels this week sealed an agreement on

The 2011 credit outlook for hedge funds is stable overall, with signs of improvement underpinned by the industry's positive performance and profitability, Moody's Investors Service said in an Industry Outlook published Tuesday. The Moody's report highlights that the hedge fund industry has registered strong performance since the latter part of Q3 2010, which has resulted

After buoyant wine auctions that saw booming sales, most auctioneers believe the only bubbles in the wine market are in the Champagnes poured during the bidding. Chicago-based wine merchants Hart Davis Hart reaped $4.9 million at its Lafite auction on Saturday, reinforcing its image as the most sought-after, top growth Bordeaux. And on the same

There is big savings potential in the administrative burden Cypriot companies bear, worth up to 155 million euros per year, a study by auditing company KPMG has shown. The study was commissioned by the Cypriot government and the results were presented on Monday, March 21, during a meeting between the Executive Committee of the Cyprus