Just a few seats short of a majority, German Chancellor Angela Merkel has said she's ready to begin coalition talks with the center-left SPD, but with animosity on both sides, it's not quite clear who will be courting whom, according to German analysts.
The UK's biggest online university project has been launched, with more than 20 universities offering free courses. Students will be able to follow courses on mobile phones as well as computers. The UK's project, called FutureLearn, sees UK universities entering the global market in so-called Moocs - massive open online courses.
The Venezuela government has temporarily taken over a toilet paper factory in order to avoid a nationwide shortage. The decision was implemented by the National Guard which took control of the ‘Manufacturas de Papel’ plant and authorities will now oversee and monitor its production.
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, said they were committed to consolidating the strategic alliance between their two countries during a meeting in Beijing at which they signed a dozen cooperation and investment agreements worth 20 billion dollars.
Delays are plaguing work at airports in seven of the 12 Brazilian cities that will host the World Cup nine months from now, the daily O Globo reported Sunday. Citing a survey by Infraero, the federal airports agency, the paper said the worst delay was in the southern city of Porto Alegre, where work on expanding terminal at a cost of 69 million dollars has not even begun.
US bank JP Morgan Chase has agreed to pay four regulators 920 million dollars relating to a 6.2bn loss incurred as a result of the London Whale trades. The settlement is the third biggest banking fine by US regulators, and the second largest by UK regulators. As part of the deal JP Morgan admitted violating US federal securities laws.
Argentines expect an inflation of 30% for the next twelve months despite a slight deceleration in prices which consumers admit in some periods of the current year according to the findings from the Di Tella University.
A ‘message in a bottle’ dropped just off the north-western end of South Georgia three years ago has washed up on Stewart Island, off the south end of New Zealand - more than half a world away, reports the July edition of the South Georgia Newsletter.
After 47 years of service for the Royal Air Force, the VC10 took to the skies on Friday 20 September 2013 for its final Air-to-Air refuelling operational sortie. The aircraft will retire on 25 September 2013.
Ad hoc’ talks do not mean four sides: that was the swift and firm declaration from the Government of Gibraltar in response to statements made to the Gibraltar Chronicle by Gonzalo de Benito, Spain’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs.