International

• Saturday, February 6th 2010 - 01:45 UTC

  Spain’s economy contacted 3.6% in 2009, the most in decades

  

  First the bad news: Spain's economy contracted by 3.6% in 2009, the most in decades, as domestic demand plummeted according to a Bank of Spain estimate that was in line with government forecasts.

• Friday, February 5th 2010 - 02:39 UTC

  World markets collapse on fears of Euro zone debt problems

  

  Concerns about the US economy and the potential spread of debt problems in the Euro zone (Greece, Portugal and Spain) have led to large falls in world stock markets. US and key European markets lost more than 2% while those in Spain and Portugal fell by more than 5%.

• Thursday, February 4th 2010 - 23:21 UTC

  Trichet forecasts Euro zone recovery at moderate path but with bumps

  

  The euro zone economy will continue to grow at a moderate pace but with bumps on its path to recovery, European Central Bank (ECB) President Jean-Claude Trichet said on Thursday.

• Thursday, February 4th 2010 - 18:09 UTC

  Closer ties with France and other allies in UK’s forces future

  

  The British Armed Services will have to rely more on France and other international allies as they face “tough choices” in the coming years, said UK Defence Secretary Bob Ainsworth on the launching of Government Green Paper that will pave the way for a full-scale strategic defence review after the General Election.

• Thursday, February 4th 2010 - 17:36 UTC

  Bank of England leaves rates unchanged but pauses pumping liquidity

  

  The Bank of England decided Thursday against further quantitative easing (QE), the policy designed to stimulate growth in the UK economy. Under QE, the Bank has pumped new money into the economy by buying assets such as government bonds, as a way to boost lending by commercial banks.
  Last week, it revealed it had spent all of the £200 billion put aside for QE.

• Thursday, February 4th 2010 - 17:25 UTC

  UK readies for a major Strategic Defence review debate

  

  A Green Paper posing fundamental questions for the future of the United Kingdom’s defence has been published Wednesday by the MoD, paving the way for a post-election (May) Strategic Defence Review (SDR).

• Thursday, February 4th 2010 - 17:17 UTC

  As China tries to cool economy asset bubbles fears emerge in Brazil

  

  Brazil, Latinamerica’s largest economy is feeling the consequences of China’s moves to rein in an overheated economy and global fears of asset bubbles in attractive fast developing economies. The strongest warning came this week from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, OECD.

• Thursday, February 4th 2010 - 17:13 UTC

  Kraft sealed Cadbury takeover as shareholders accept the deal

  

  US food giant Kraft has sealed its takeover of British confectioner Cadbury after shareholders accepted the deal. The move means Kraft can press ahead with its five-month battle for control of Cadbury, which has 186 years of history as an independent company.

• Thursday, February 4th 2010 - 16:24 UTC

  Currency unions do not survive “without fiscal and political union”

  

  The New York University professor who anticipated the financial crisis cautioned about the Greek situation and the Euro zone saying history indicates that no currency union has survived without a strong fiscal and political union.

• Thursday, February 4th 2010 - 16:18 UTC

  “Greek” syndrome hits Portuguese bonds and economic prospects

  

  Portugal's debt agency IGCP cut its planned T-bill placement to 300 million Euros from 500 million on Wednesday as yields soared 49% compared to January's placement, following on events in Greece and Bank of Portugal Governor Vitor Constancio's gloomy comments on the country’s economy.