International

• Wednesday, June 27th 2012 - 20:36 UTC

  The man who steered Greece into the Euro zone is back on the helm

  

  The Greek government has appointed a new finance minister after its first choice resigned due to ill health less than a week after being appointed. Economist Yannis Stournaras has now been appointed, the government said.

• Wednesday, June 27th 2012 - 17:30 UTC

  Queen Elizabeth shakes hands with former IRA commander McGuinness

  

  Britain's Queen Elizabeth shook the hand of former Irish Republican Army (IRA) commander Martin McGuinness for the first time on Wednesday, drawing a line under a conflict that cost the lives of thousands of soldiers and civilians, including that of her cousin.

• Wednesday, June 27th 2012 - 08:51 UTC

  Italian treasury to the rescue of the world’s oldest bank, Monte dei Pachi

  

  Italy offered up to 2 billion Euros on Tuesday to plug a capital gap in the bank Monte dei Paschi di Siena, the second time in three years the cash-strapped state has had to bail out the world's oldest bank.

• Wednesday, June 27th 2012 - 03:39 UTC

  Malvinas are Argentine: ignore provocations in English soil, CFK tells Olympic delegation

  

  President Cristina Fernandez told the Argentine Olympics delegation there is no need to interfere with the sports spirit in London to show Malvinas belongs to Argentina and called on competitors not to fall prey of provocations while in English soil.

• Tuesday, June 26th 2012 - 22:37 UTC

  Spanish regions cripple Madrid’s attempts to keep budget deficit target

  

  Spain is considering raising consumer, energy and property taxes, the government said, as it struggles to reduce a public deficit that may have already exceeded one of its budgeted ceilings for the full year.

• Tuesday, June 26th 2012 - 06:32 UTC

  Argentina/China sign a raft of agreements to boost trade and investment

  

  Argentina signed with China a raft of mostly farm-related agreements at a ceremony on Monday in Buenos Aires attended by Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and his Argentine president Cristina Fernandez.

• Tuesday, June 26th 2012 - 04:30 UTC

  Moody’s confirms Spanish banks on the cliff burdened by souring real-estate loans

  

  Spain largest lenders, Santander SA and Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria SA were downgraded by Moody’s rating agency because of the country’s sovereign debt and souring real-estate loans.

• Monday, June 25th 2012 - 23:55 UTC

  Global economy remains unbalanced after five years of financial strain, warns BIS

  

  Those hoping for quick fixes to the strains in the global economy will continue to be disappointed, writes the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) in its 82nd Annual Report, released on Sunday.

• Monday, June 25th 2012 - 20:46 UTC

  Spain formally request Euro zone rescue to recapitalize debt-laden banks

  

  Spain on Monday formally requested Euro zone rescue loans to recapitalise its debt-laden banks as the Euro and shares fell on investor scepticism about this week's EU summit.

• Monday, June 25th 2012 - 20:17 UTC

  Foreign Secretary wants hands-on relationship with Overseas Territories

  

  Early sight of the introduction to a consultative “white paper” about the future of Britain's relations with its overseas territories, suggests that the Foreign Office (FCO), and the Foreign Secretary William Hague in particular, want to have a closer “hands-on” relationship with the governments of the former colonies, now officially known as the overseas territories.