International

Wednesday, December 24th 2008 - 20:00 UTC
UK economy shrank faster than expected during third quarter

The United Kingdom economy shrank faster between July and September than had previously been thought, official data showed. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said it had contracted by 0.6% in the quarter - its previous estimate had been a contraction of 0.5%.
Wednesday, December 24th 2008 - 20:00 UTC
Madonna's Sticky & Sweet nets a gross 280 million USD

Madonna's triumphant Sticky & Sweet has ended with 2,350,282 people attending and a gross of over 280 million US dollars in ticket sales for 58 concerts. Madonna performed in Europe, United States, Canada followed by Mexico, Argentina, Chile and Brazil where her last show was on December 21.
Wednesday, December 24th 2008 - 20:00 UTC
Era of cheap gas is coming to an end warns Russia's Putin

The era of cheap gas is coming to an end, Russia's Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has told ministers from the world's major gas-exporting countries. Putin said the cost of extracting gas was rising sharply therefore “the era of cheap energy resources, of cheap gas, is of course coming to an end”.
Tuesday, December 23rd 2008 - 20:00 UTC
Champagne sales down for the first time in 20 years

Champagne sales during the first ten months of 2008 indicate a 4.9% drop following a record 338 million bottles sold in 2007, according to France's champagne wine board, CIVC. October was particularly significant with 23% less bottles leaving France's main cellars compared to a year ago.
Tuesday, December 23rd 2008 - 20:00 UTC
EU-Brazil agree common position for London G20 summit

Visiting French President Nicolas Sarkozy and his Brazilian counterpart Lula da Silva agreed on Monday to take a common EU-Brazil position to the next G20 summit dealing with the global financial crisis.
Monday, December 22nd 2008 - 20:00 UTC
Beijing and Taipei warm up to face financial downturn

A senior Chinese official has pledged that China will consider any request for assistance from Taiwan during the current global financial downturn.
Monday, December 22nd 2008 - 20:00 UTC
Barclays: Bankers should apologize to regain trust

The credit crunch will last for up to two more years, the boss of Britain's Barclays Bank believes. John Varley forecast that consumers and businesses would struggle to access credit for between one and two more years. He added that banks should apologise to customers to regain their trust.
Monday, December 22nd 2008 - 20:00 UTC
EC warns about temptation of protectionism

European Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso admitted that the current global financial downturn implies a growing risk of increasing protectionism and other forms of limits to migratory and economic policies.
Monday, December 22nd 2008 - 20:00 UTC
Spanish companies secure Gibraltar PW contracts

Chief Minister Peter Caruana has declared that the Gibraltar Government has adjudicated public works contracts to Spanish companies worth an estimated 200 million Euros.

Mr Caruana was speaking at a meeting of Costa del Sol socialists in Malaga where he was the guest of Spain's former Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs Bernardino Leon, widely credited with being one of the intellectual instigators of the (UK, Spain, Gibraltar) Tripartite Forum.
Monday, December 22nd 2008 - 20:00 UTC
China reacts to negative Nov: fifth rate cut in 3 months

China cut interest rates for a fifth time in three months on Monday in its latest efforts to rev up the economy. The one-year lending rate will drop by 0.27 percentage points to 5.31% and the deposit rate by the same amount to 2.25%, the People's Bank of China said on its Web site.