Photo

Greece still to convince Europe over rescue deal

7:39pm GMT

ATHENS/BRUSSELS - Europe gave Greece until Wednesday to convince sceptical international creditors that it would stick to the punishing terms of a multi-billion-euro rescue package, endorsed by parliament as rioters torched downtown Athens. | Video

Murdoch facing battle with staff in Sun showdown

7:21pm GMT

LONDON - Rupert Murdoch will face hostile and angry staff when he arrives in Britain this week seeking to face down a growing rebellion within his newspaper business and end the talk that his flagship Sun could close following a string of arrests.

A closed cashpoint marked with masking tape is seen outside a Barclays Bank branch being refurbished in the financial district City of London August 31, 2011. REUTERS/Chris Helgren

Lending lapse pressures banks and government

Top banks fell short of their government targets to lend to small businesses last year, dealing a blow to the coalition government's hopes of removing a barrier to economic recovery.  Full Article 

Germany's Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble listens to his Greek counterpart Evangelos Venizelos (R) during a euro zone finance ministers' meeting in Brussels November 7, 2011.  REUTERS/Francois Lenoir

Germany running out of patience with Greece

BERLIN - Germany is losing patience with throwing money into Greece, with lingering sympathy being undermined by anti-Germany slogans from politicians and protesters.  Full Article | Commentary 

Liverpool's Luis Suarez reacts after missing a chance to score against West Bromwich Albion during their English Premier League soccer match at The Hawthorns in West Bromwich, central England, October 29, 2011. REUTERS/Darren Staples

Standard Chartered raised Suarez concerns

It was Liverpool's U.S. owners and their banking shirt sponsor which pays around £20 million pounds a season that intervened over the weekend to help defuse a race row that was damaging one of the most successful English football clubs.  Full Article | Related Story 

German federal police (Bundespolizei) patrol at Frankfurt Airport, March 3, 2011. REUTERS/Ralph Orlowski

BAA says Heathrow losing China traffic to rivals

Heathrow is falling behind rival European airports in the battle for lucrative routes to China because of the constraints on growth at Britain's largest airport, operator BAA says.  Full Article | Related Story 

France's President Nicolas Sarkozy delivers a speech after the inauguration of the new headquarters of the Gendarmerie Nationale in Issy-les-Moulineaux, Paris suburb, February 13, 2012.  REUTERS/Philippe Wojazer

Sarkozy too sullied a sell for 2012?

PARIS - Nicolas Sarkozy had millions convinced he would break with the past and restore French pride. His lustre was fading within hours as he celebrated with corporate chiefs and pop stars.  Full Article 

The People's Republic of China flag and the U.S. Stars and Stripes fly along Pennsylvania Avenue near the U.S. Capitol in Washington during Chinese President Hu Jintao's state visit, January 18, 2011. Credit: Reuters/Hyungwon Kang

Obama's election-year test with China

WASHINGTON - As he plans to greet China's vice president, Barack Obama is overhauling U.S. economic policy toward Beijing, looking for results that have bedevilled him and his predecessors.  Full Article 

Opposition presidential candidate and Miranda state Governor Henrique Capriles speaks to his supporters after knowing the results of the election in Caracas February 12, 2012. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins

Venezuela's Capriles faces uphill struggle

CARACAS - Venezuelan opposition flagbearer Henrique Capriles could give President Hugo Chavez, with his charisma and deep pockets, the closest race of his career.  Full Article 

Wayne Arnold

IMF offers best way for China to save Europe

Beijing will almost certainly say it wants to see the euro zone survive at their joint summit. If so, it should pony up – not by lending directly, but via the International Monetary Fund’s $1 trillion rescue package. That way China not only has a better chance of getting paid back, but may also win a bigger role at the world’s currency watchdog.  Commentary 

Hugo Dixon

Monti turnaround can go much further

Mario Monti’s ability to take a crisis and turn it into an opportunity may one day be taught as a case study in political economy. Monti has such credibility he has been able to reform the pension system, liberalise a raft of monopolistic industries and launch a high-profile crackdown on tax evasion. That has helped cut Italian bond yields. The contrast with the end of the Berlusconi era is stark.  Commentary 

John Foley

Obama and Xi may make unhappy Valentines

The Valentine’s Day summit between Xi Jinping and Barack Obama could make for uncomfortable viewing. China’s likely next president is due to meet the U.S. leader in Washington – as his predecessor did 10 years ago. Only this time the stakes are higher.  Commentary 

Kathleen Brooks

A funny sort of Union

While Greek politicians have been in the throes of austerity negotiations, the bond markets in Italy, Spain and Portugal have continued to recover. So does this mean that the markets will have a delayed reaction to what is going on in Athens, or does Greece not matter anymore?  Commentary 

Laurence Copeland

What would markets and Merkel make of Hollande?

That the supposedly cautious Frau Merkel has weighed into the French Presidential campaign tells you how much she thinks is as stake. Markets remain quite relaxed about France, presumably because they are still counting on President Sarkozy to save it from itself. What would it mean for both if a President Hollande embarked on a spending binge?  Commentary 

Trend Watch

Follow Reuters