The higher than expected Greek budget deficit in 2009 calls for full implementation of already planned fiscal tightening measures that amount to 4 percent of GDP, the European Commission said on Thursday. The Commission said it was not focusing on the starting point for Greece or the size of the deficit at the end of
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Financial markets ticked over hesitantly on Thursday with investors digesting mixed U.S. earnings results and waiting for the next move in Greece's debt crisis. World stocks as measured by MSCI were flat with emerging market equities the same. The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 gained 0.1 percent. Earlier, Japan's Nikkei closed down nearly 1.3 percent. Toyota Motor
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Britain's public finances came in slightly better than economists had expected in March, but official figures on Wednesday still confirmed the 2009/10 fiscal year as the worst since records began after World War Two. The Office for National Statistics said public sector net borrowing in March rose to 23.498 billion pounds from 20.060 billion pounds
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Asian stocks fell on Thursday as several major U.S. firms issued disappointing profit outlooks, casting doubts on the strength of a global recovery, and as investors grew impatient for action on Greece's debt crisis, which weighed on the euro. The MSCI index of Asia-Pacific stocks outside Japan shed 1 percent, led by a decline in
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Germany's main opposition party threatened on Wednesday to block government plans to fast-track parliamentary approval of aid for debt-ravaged Greece, a move which could end up delaying a critical bailout for weeks. Ahead of a key regional vote, the budget spokesman for the Social Democrats (SPD), Carsten Schneider, told Reuters his party did not want
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British jobless claims fell three times faster than expected last month, giving a boost to financial markets, though the upbeat message was undercut by the rise in a broader unemployment measure to a 14-year high. Wednesday's official data adds fuel to Britain's closest-run election race in decades, with the opposition Conservative and Liberal Democrats seizing
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Robust fixed income trading results launched Morgan Stanley (MS.N) to a better-than-expected first-quarter profit on Wednesday, sending its shares up. With its quarterly profit, Morgan Stanley joined in a rally that began last week with strong results from JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N) and continued with Goldman Sachs Group Inc's (GS.N) profit surge on Tuesday.
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European authorities were right to shut down air traffic over the past week to avert any risk of disaster if planes flew through thick clouds of volcanic dust from Iceland, an international volcano expert said on Wednesday. Henri Goudru, a United Nations scientific adviser with 40 years of experience in studying volcanic eruptions, told a
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European shares slipped on Wednesday, with banks pressured by lingering concern on Greece as Athens begins talks over an emergency loan deal, offsetting gains in tech stocks which rose on strong results from Apple. By 1058 GMT, the FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares was down 0.6 percent at 1,097.04 points after rising 1.4
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U.S. stock index futures were mixed on Wednesday with Nasdaq lifted by blowout earnings from Apple late Tuesday as the focus shifting to results from four Dow components and other bellwethers including Morgan Stanley. Apple Inc (AAPL.O) shares hit an all-time high in late trading on Tuesday after its quarterly results blew past expectations on
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