Dreaming of the record 100 million-euro lottery jackpot that could be won on Thursday, Italians have been snapping up tickets in the hope of putting economic woes behind them for life. "There has been a big increase in people buying 'Superenalotto' lottery tickets in the last few weeks. About three times, four times as many
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Greece's parliament decided on Wednesday to launch an investigation into a land swap between the state and a monastery that has put pressure on the conservative government for weeks. The opposition challenged the conservative government to explain the deal in which state-owned property was given to the Vatopedi monastery in return for cheaper land. Although
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Oil ticked up on Thursday ahead of an emergency OPEC meeting expected to consider supply cuts after a 45 percent drop in prices from record highs hit in July. The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, the source of more than a third of the world's oil supplies, meets on Friday in Vienna. Remarks from
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Net mortgage lending in Britain in September rose by 3.6 billion pounds, a bigger rise than in the month before but still below the 6-month average, British Bankers' Association data showed on Thursday. Approvals for new home purchase numbered 23,422 in September, up from 21,342 in August, but still 56.6 percent lower on the year.
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Goldman Sachs Group Inc is preparing to cut about 10 percent of its 32,500 employees, the Wall Street Journal said, citing people familiar with the matter. The cuts are expected throughout the company, the paper said. Goldman Sachs did not immediately return a call seeking comment.
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Cypriot Minister of Defence Costas Papacostas will be visiting Thessaloniki, Greece’s second largest city, from 25 to 28 October to attend celebrations marking Greece’s resistance to the Axis forces, in 1940. During his four-day visit, Papacostas will attend a church service in the presence of the President of the Hellenic Republic Karolos Papoulias and Greek
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British retail sales volumes fell less than expected in September but the annual rate of growth slowed to its weakest in 2-1/2 years, official data showed on Thursday. The Office for National Statistics said sales fell 0.4 percent last month, after a revised 1.1 percent gain in August, taking the annual rate down to 1.8
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A flight from emerging market debt and stocks helped push the dollar to a two-year high against major currencies on Thursday as fears built about a global recession. Investors were also focusing on major company earnings reports, fearful that the worst financial crisis in 80 years and the deteriorating global economy could combine to batter
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The current financial crisis will require unprecedented levels of global coordination to resolve it because no country is immune to its effects, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said on Thursday. Speaking in Beijing a day before the opening of the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM), Barroso said that apart from dealing with financial problems, leaders would
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Democrat Barack Obama's lead over Republican rival John McCain has grown to 12 points in the U.S. presidential race, with crucial independent and women voters increasingly moving to his side, according to a Reuters/C-SPAN/Zogby poll released on Thursday. With less than two weeks before the Nov. 4 election, Obama leads McCain 52 percent to 40
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