International
InternationalUK mortgage market receives £ 1 billion to stem repossessions
British Primer Minister Gordon Brown has moved to stem growing repossessions with a £1 billion package to allow struggling homeowners to defer mortgage payments for up to two years.
Mumbai attacks leave India and Pakistan on edge of conflict
India on Monday made it clear that the deadly terror strikes in Mumbai were carried out by Pakistan-based militants and asked Islamabad to take “strong action” against the “elements responsible for this outrage” - a sign that ties between the two countries are headed for a rocky patch.
Another black Monday for the stock markets calendar
Wall Street suffered one of its worst days Monday, slicing 680 points off the Dow Jones industrial average as fears of a recession, or even worse, were confirmed by the latest data. Not only did stocks end their last week's five-day winning streak, they erased more than half the gains and the Standard & Poor's 500 stock index one of the broadest market gauges, lost nearly 9%.
US cruise vessel outruns hijacking pirates in Gulf of Aden
Pirates chased and shot at a US cruise liner with more than 1,000 people on board but failed to hijack the vessel as it sailed along a corridor patrolled by international warships, a maritime official said Tuesday.
Melamine scandal virtually grounds China's dairy exports
China's dairy exports have all but ground to a halt following the scandal earlier this year when milk was tainted with the industrial chemical melamine. Data reported in the country's state media suggests that dairy exports fell 92% year-on-year in October.
Kuwait sovereign fund also interested in Repsol-YPF
The Kuwait Investment Authority, KIA, could rival a bid by Russian oil company Lukoil for the 20% stake in the Spanish oil corporation Repsol.YPF, according to the Finmarket website, which was published in Madrid's ABC newspaper.
Oil tumbles to 47 USD; call for Russia & Norway to join OPEC
While oil skidded to its lowest level since May 2005 in New York on Tuesday, the head of OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries) said he hopes oil producing nations like Russia will join the organization, or at least agree to output cuts to help spark a rally in prices.
Unemployment up is Spain: almost 3 million jobless
The number of people filing for jobless benefits in Spain soared to almost 3 million following a 6% rise in unemployment during November. The Labour Ministry said Tuesday that an additional 171,243 people signed on for unemployment benefits last month, bringing the total to 2.99 million.
Japan imports whale meat from Iceland; first time in 17 years
Japan has bought whale meat from Iceland, the first time in 17 years it has imported the banned meat, according to a Saturday report from Kyodo News agency.
UK manufacturing slowdown continues to take hold
British manufacturing fell at a record pace in November as the slowdown continued to take hold, the latest figures have revealed.
