EUROPEAN UNION

The price of platinum, the precious metal used to make anti-pollution equipment for vehicles, is in a slump due to the global economic downturn, but it's especially bad in Europe where platinum demand is greatest. Nevertheless, analysts are bullish, believing the price will rise in the latter half of the year and into the next.

Poles have streamed into Northern Ireland by the thousands since Poland joined the European Union in 2004.

The legendary German Nurburgring racetrack is bankrupt after pouring millions into an amusement park.

An animal rights campaign underscores the power activists have to pressure companies to stop using inhumane suppliers.

Yemen is going through a difficult political transition after the ouster of president Ali Abdallah Saleh, but that isn't as bad as its humanitarian crisis

The European Union has called into question Romania's respect for democratic institutions, following the center-left government's attempt to impeach conservative President Traian Basescu.

The Irish government will spend more than ?2.25 billion ($2.76 billion) on new infrastructure projects and to restart existing road, school and health care construction projects to create as many as 13,000 jobs without hiking debt, government officials said on Tuesday.

Greece?s jobless rate is about double the average for the EU, while the unemployment rate among youths under 25 is an astounding 51.5 percent --- having doubled over the past three years.

Considering her South African roots and the many serious challenges facing the African Union today, Dlamini-Zuma will be under intense scrutiny in the coming weeks.

Euro zone nations, collectively, posted an $8.42 billion trade surplus in May, well ahead of a $1.46 billion deficit in the year-earlier period, as exports rose and imports remained relatively steady, the European Union's statistical office said Monday.

A bill requiring the Iranian government to design and build nuclear-powered commercial ships was approved by a parliamentary committee Sunday. The measure stipulates the government must provide nuclear fuel for the ships, which would require the Islamic Republic to continue its uranium-enrichment activities.

One of the euro zone's two bailout funds could begin disbursing monies to Spain at the end of this month in a €100 billion ($120 billion) rescue of the country's embattled banks, according to an article by the Associated Press based on a story in the German newsweekly Der Spiegel on Saturday.

The euro zone will not disintegrate. Instead, there is a fifty-fifty chance of a split between the financially sound countries and economically weaker ones, the Economic Outlook Group said on Friday.

This summer, both Greece and Europe are between a rock and a hard place. Greece faces the possible prospect of domestic coalition collapse, or ouster from the euro zone; Europe’s leaders, an elongated repayment for their loans to Greece, or a Greece default.

Asian shares barely budged Thursday as the U.S. Federal Reserve appeared to put off taking more aggressive stimulus steps until economic conditions worsen, offering investors few reasons to take risks with second-quarter earnings painting a globally gloomy picture.

The trade deficit in the U.S. narrowed slightly in May as exports to Europe and China rose, while import bill fell on cheaper crude oil prices.

After promising late last week to press the accelerator pedal on spending and tax reforms, Rajoy outlined a serious of major efforts aimed at reducing his nation's budget gap and securing the faith of his European Union partners.

Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti told reporters Tuesday that Italy won't need a Greek-style bailout, but said the country may need to tap into the European Stability Mechanism (ESM), Europe's all-purpose bailout bucket, asking the fund to subsidize sovereign borrowing by buying Italian government bonds.

Ex-Barclays boss Bob Diamond, who will still receive his salary and benefits worth in excess of £2 million, had given up the bonus payment voluntarily according to Barclays executive chairman Marcus Agius.

Amid the mixed global cues, Indian markets opened on a positive note Tuesday morning.

Asian shares crawled higher on Tuesday after sharp losses the day before but gains were limited as investors, worried about a global economic deceleration, waited for Chinese trade data due later in the day that could set the tone for risk appetite.