GDP

China's annual growth target for 2012 looks increasingly in jeopardy as demand at home falters and Europe's debt crisis worsens, complicating matters for Beijing as the country heads into a once-in-a-decade leadership transition.

With all of its contradictions, Azerbaijan is a complex country to fully figure out: Its tangled friendships and autocratic policies are often puzzling as are its relations with the West. But its obsession with oil is as undiluted and unwavering as anything the country has ever done.

Hailed as an African reformer, Yoweri Museveni has now become an autocrat who bends the rules to stay in power and hands favors to his family. Nothing new for Africa, unfortunately -- but the exact opposite of what he himself once pledged.

An inch of time is an inch of gold, but you can't buy that inch of time with an inch of gold. Does this Chinese proverb ring true in the case of Indians who invest in gold for a 'good time' tomorrow? Or is the craze for the yellow metal ruining the country's economy?

German Chancellor Angela Merkel resisted pressure on Friday for common euro zone bonds or a more flexible use of Europe's rescue funds but agreed with leaders of France, Italy and Spain on a ?130 billion ($156 billion) package to revive growth.

Japan's gaping trade shortfall with the EU could exacerbate its fiscal woes by worsening its debt situation and subjecting Japanese government bonds to rising yields in the face of mounting market fears and increasing skepticism among U.S investors.

To that end, Hollande wants to slap a 75 percent tax rate on those Frenchmen earning in excess of ?1 million per year.

Greek officials will present the proposed revisions at a euro zone finance ministers' meeting in Luxembourg on Thursday.

The formation of a new Greek government Wednesday staves off fears of a swift departure from the euro zone by the Hellenic Republic. But this week's election and installation of a new administration merely extends the country's economic death-spiral as its economic woes remain deep and pervasive.

If contributions follow recent trends, donations to state campaigns could surpass $2 billion this year.

Housing starts fell 4.8 percent in May to an annual rate of 708,000, but building permits climbed 7.9 percent to the highest level in nearly four years, the U.S. Commerce Department said Tuesday. Economists surveyed by Reuters had forecast a reading of 720,000.

China pledged $43 billion, while India and Russia promised $10 billion each, to the International Monetary Fund Monday as aid to debt-ridden countries in the euro zone.

A new report shows that the Ethiopian government, caught up in an ambitious, nationwide agricultural overhaul, is facilitating the mistreatment and forced relocation of small-scale farmers in Omo Valley.

It's been overlooked -- it's received very little coverage by the popular press -- but it's worth repeating: one benefit of the U.S. health care reform legislation will be: enhanced employee mobility.

The Socialists and their cohorts now control 315 seats in the 577-seat Assembly -- marking the first time in 30 years that Socialists have enjoyed such dominance in the French government.

Ultra Petroleum, Gentex Corp, Groupon, Peabody Energy, Nokia, AK Steel Holding, Goodrich Petroleum, Facebook and Coca-Cola Co. are among the companies whose shares are moving in pre-market trading Monday.

Papandreou believes that given enough time, the Greeks would be able to adhere to bailout terms.

Indian Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee Saturday expressed confidence that the Reserve Bank of India would adjust the monetary policy on its mid-quarter monetary policy review June 18.

There are fresh signs the U.S. economy may be caught in a storm fed by a floundering Europe and a slackening China. Weakening demand in both regions appears to be taking a toll on U.S. manufacturing, already the locus of a contracting workforce.

A euro-area breakup might appear to be inevitable at this point. But, instead of Greece being pushed out the door, analysts say an outside-the-box solution to the euro zone's sovereign-debt problem would be for Germany to voluntarily withdraw from the euro and reinstall the Deutsche mark.

A tight squeeze on salaries of full-time employees, along with spending cuts and burgeoning levels of part-time employment and long-term unemployment, offsets the decline in overall unemployment, leading to a rise in the number of poor Britons.