International

• Friday, August 6th 2010 - 06:03 UTC

  Euro zone benchmark rate unchanged, but ECB needs to absorb extra liquidity

  

  European Central Bank President Jean Claude Trichet said Europe is recovering faster than forecast and money markets are improving, paving the way for the ECB to phase out liquidity tools used to fight the financial crisis.

• Friday, August 6th 2010 - 06:01 UTC

  Bank of England leaves rate on hold at 0.5%; concerns over recovery strength

  

  The Bank of England has voted to keep interest rates on hold at 0.5% amid concerns over the strength of the economic recovery. The decision by the bank's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) means rates will stay at their current record low for an 18th month. It suggests the committee does not see high inflation as a serious concern.

• Friday, August 6th 2010 - 03:01 UTC

  Wheat futures soar as drought-stricken Russia halts grain exports

  

  Wheat futures soared on Thursday after the world’s number three exporter the Russian Federation said it would temporarily halt grain shipments. The worst drought on record have devastated crops in parts of Russia and caused international grain prices to spike as markets anticipate a drop in global supplies.

• Thursday, August 5th 2010 - 16:11 UTC

  Japan rice stockpiles to reach the highest in eight years in 2011

  

  Japan’s food rice stockpiles may reach the highest level in eight years at the end of June 2011, leading to a price drop and planting curbs by growers next year. Private and government inventories are forecast to climb 2.5% to 3.24 million metric tons from 3.16 million tons a year earlier, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said in a report Wednesday.

• Wednesday, August 4th 2010 - 21:57 UTC

  Santander takes over 318 branches from Royal Bank of Scotland

  

  Royal Bank of Scotland has agreed to sell 318 branches to Santander for a premium of £350 million on the assets' value. The sale includes 311 RBS-branded branches in England and Wales, and seven NatWest branches in Scotland.

• Wednesday, August 4th 2010 - 20:59 UTC

  Meat from offspring of cloned cows consumed in UK triggers controversy

  

  Meat from the offspring of a cloned cow was eaten in the UK last year, the Food Standards Agency has said. Two bulls from the embryos of a cow cloned in the US were bought by a farm near Nairn in the Highlands, and meat from one was sold to consumers.

• Tuesday, August 3rd 2010 - 15:20 UTC

  UN Court ruling props “self determination”, contains “territorial integrity”

  

  An International Court of Justice ruling, that Kosovo (in the Balkans) did not violate international law when it claimed secession from Serbia in February 2008, may have implications for territories caught in territorial sovereignty disputes such as Gibraltar, it has emerged.

• Tuesday, August 3rd 2010 - 15:13 UTC

  Low fares airline has Gibraltar/UK summer flights fully booked

  

  Low fares airline Monarch is adding even more flights from Gibraltar to the UK this summer with an additional Friday service to London Luton, which will operate between 24 September and 29 October 2010, according to the Gibraltar Chronicle.

• Tuesday, August 3rd 2010 - 15:04 UTC

  Wheat prices at 22 month high; fears about drought and fires in Russia

  

  International wheat prices hit a 22-month high Monday after a severe drought and ensuing wildfires in Russia devastated crops. Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) wheat for September delivery broke through the $7-a-bushel level in US trade for the first time since September 2008 but have since falling back.

• Monday, August 2nd 2010 - 05:55 UTC

  Global pact banning cluster munitions comes into force

  

  United Nations officials have expressed their delight at Sunday’s entry into force of the international convention banning the manufacture, use and stockpiling of cluster munitions, calling it a “major advance for the global disarmament and humanitarian agendas.”