The euro and European shares weakened on Wednesday as fears about the prospect of a Greek debt default overwhelmed positive news on the outlook for Germany, the region's largest economy.
Gold prices struggled Wednesday to hold recent gains as the dollar rose and investors awaited results of the Federal Reserve's two-day meeting on interest rates.
World No.1 mobile equipment maker Ericsson saw its profit halve in the fourth quarter as the global economic slowdown hit demand, and forecast network operators would remain cautious on spending in the months ahead.
While global financial markets have calmed down in the waning days of 2011 and early 2012, debt problems in eurozone, China's real estate problem and oil price pressure are three big concerns which haunt the near-term outlook according to a leading macro-economy guidance organization.
Eurozone finance ministers have rejected an offer by private bondholders to help restructure Greece's debts, officials said Monday, sending negotiators back to the drawing board and raising the threat of default.
Eurozone finance ministers will decide on Monday what terms of a Greek debt restructuring they are ready to accept as part of a second bailout package for Athens after negotiators for private creditors said they could not improve their offer.
The same house was attacked last Sunday and police believe the incidents are hate crimes because the victims are immigrants from Nigeria
Europe's telecom shares have long been seen as safe houses when the wolf is at the door, but recession, fierce competition and costly network upgrades are huffing and puffing at their capacity to pay generous dividends.
Asian shares rose to a two-month high and the euro firmed Thursday after news that the International Monetary Fund was seeking to boost its resources to tackle the euro zone debt crisis helped ease worries about Europe's funding difficulties.
Canada's main stock index looked set to open higher on Wednesday after reports that International Monetary Fund could boost its European lending facility by $1 trillion to help ease the euro zone debt crisis.
The euro rallied broadly on Wednesday after a ratings agency appeared to soften its stance regarding its outlook on Italy, while a media report that the IMF would boost its funding capabilities also pushed the single currency higher.
A German sale of 3.44 billion euros of two-year bonds saw strong demand on Wednesday as concerns over Greece led investors to stock up on safe-haven debt, while Portuguese treasury bills benefited from ample liquidity in the financial system.
The government will avoid bringing down an austerity budget this year, because of tough economic times globally, Finance Minister Jim Flaherty said on Monday.
LONDON, Jan 17 - The downgrade of much of Europe's credit ratings demonstrates in perhaps the bluntest terms so far the collapse of any lingering -- if lazy -- assumptions that developed states are somehow safer than emerging counterparts.
Credit rating agency says decision inevitable following cuts to creditworthiness of two EFSF guarantors, France and Austria.
The European sovereign debt crisis has been festering for nearly three years, and some observers wonder whether the credit default swaps (CDS) that have been written on the government of Greece, Ireland, Italy, Portugal and Spain represent another source of risk for the world's financial institutions.
Greece debt talks are at an impasse and concerns are rising that the country will face a hard default within six weeks if a plan is not reached. Greek leaders are set to resume negotiations with private-sector creditors this week with hopes of reaching the base points of a debt deal to avoid national default by a Feb. 23 meeting of Eurozone finance ministers.
The European Central Bank will do all it can to calm the situation after Standard & Poor's downgraded several euro zone members' debt ratings in the past week, ECB Governing Council member Ewald Nowotny said on Sunday.
The euro zone's bailout fund can hold onto its AAA rating with Standard & Poor's through higher guarantees from the euro zone's remaining triple A countries or lower lending capacity, a senior euro zone official said Sunday.
European leaders promised on Saturday to speed up plans to strengthen spending rules and get a permanent bailout fund up and running as soon as possible, a day after U.S. agency S&P cut the ratings of several euro zone countries' creditworthiness.
JPMorgan Chase & Co could lose up to $5 billion from its exposure to Portugal, Ireland, Italy, Greece and Spain, Chief Executive Jamie Dimon said in an interview with Class CNBC, carried in Italian newspaper Milano Finanza on Saturday.
France's credit-rating cut dominated the country's newspapers on Saturday, with the left-leaning Liberation blazing below a front-page headline reading S_RKOZY that the president had lost an A.
