France to slash 24K military jobs, seeking savings

PARIS: France said Monday it will cut another 24,000 military jobs by 2019 as it attempts to maintain a force ready to deal with global threats at the time when the bill for France's decades of deficit spending is due.

Europe austerity debate to test periphery political will in Ireland

DUBLIN: Readers of Ireland's largest-selling daily newspaper were confronted by an unexpected front page headline this week when the Irish Independent proclaimed the 'End Of Austerity'.

Barack Obama chides lawmakers over flight delay fix, budget conflict

WASHINGTON: President Barack Obama chided Republicans on Saturday for approving a plan to ease air-traffic delays caused by federal spending cuts while leaving budget cuts that affect children and the elderly untouched.

Bank of Japan lifts economic forecasts

The Bank of Japan (BoJ) has raised its forecast for both economic growth and inflation this year in its twice yearly report.

Euro Resilient Amid Doubts of Turmoil as Dire: Cutting Research

The euro has often ignored policy maker pronouncements and “danced to its own tune” during the region’s sovereign debt crisis, according to a working paper published by the European Central Bank.

Australian central bank investing in Chinese government bonds

Australia's central bank plans to invest some of its foreign currency reserves in Chinese government bonds for the first time, part of a wider move to deepen financial ties with the country's biggest trading partner.

Bernanke Warned by Barnier That Bank Unit Rules Risk Retaliation

The European Union intensified its campaign against U.S. Federal Reserve proposals to toughen oversight of bank units belonging to overseas lenders, warning of “potential retaliation” against the plans because they will drive up costs.

Growth to return only slowly in second half: EU

NEW YORK: Economic growth in the euro zone will return only slowly in the second half of the year as the region continues to work toward repairing the damaged financial sector, European Union Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner Olli Rehn said on Monday.

Poll: Public pessimism on economy is increasing

WASHINGTON (AP) — For the third year in a row, the nation's economic recovery has hit a springtime soft spot. Reflecting that weakness, only 1 in 4 Americans now expects his or her own financial situation to improve over the next year, a new Associated Press-GfK poll shows.

BRICS Bank can supplement infra funds provided by World Bank, says Jim Young Kim

WASHINGTON: World Bank alone cannot meet the huge infrastructure fund requirements of the emerging nations, its President Jim Young Kim has said while welcoming the decision of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa to establish the BRICS Bank.

IMF lowers UK growth forecast for 2013 again

The International Monetary Fund's twice-yearly look at the world economy has lowered its forecasts for most developed economies, including the UK.

Minimum wage to rise but 1% hike for young falls behind inflation

The minimum wage for young people is to rise by 1%, less than the rate of inflation, amid an on-going row over rewards for top executives and bankers at bailed-out banks.

Canada Dollar Falls on U.S. Retail Sales Drop, European Concern

The Canadian dollar fell against its U.S. counterpart for the first time this week as U.S retail sales dropped the most in nine months and on reports that steps to strengthen Europe’s financial system were faltering.

Egypt sells $600 million to import basic goods

CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's central bank sold $600 million to banks in a special auction of foreign exchange on Sunday to pay for wheat, meat, cooking oil and other essential imports to a country struggling with a currency crisis.

Greece eyes imminent troika deal to unlock bailout aid

ATHENS: Greece hopes to conclude negotiations with the so-called troika of international creditors by Monday in a bid to unlock the next rescue loan, the head of the country's socialist party said Saturday.

IMF to cut US growth forecast amid downbeat retail and confidence data

America's budget wrangling is holding back recovery in the world's largest economy, according to a leaked draft of forecasts from the International Monetary Fund that coincided with data showing a dip in consumer confidence and weaker spending in the nation's shopping malls.

Brussels warns on Spanish and Slovenian 'imbalances'

The European Commission has warned that Spain and Slovenia must quickly tackle the imbalances in their economies.

Belgium protests over German low pay in EU complaint

The European Commission is studying a complaint from Belgium about low wages at some German firms, described by Belgium as unfair "social dumping".

China's March inflation eases to 2.1 pc

BEIJING: China's inflation declined in March, easing pressure on consumers but fueling questions about the strength of recovery in the world's second-biggest economy.

Portugal Plans Spending Cuts After Ruling on Salaries

Portugal will carry out more spending cuts this year and ruled out further tax increases after the Constitutional Court blocked a plan to suspend a monthly salary payment to state workers and pensioners.

BoJ policy welcome for world growth: IMF's Lagarde

BOAO, China (Reuters) - The head of the International Monetary Fund hailed Japan's unprecedented monetary policy boost this week as a welcome support for a world economy that she said has improved from a year ago.

China's big banks 'faking' their micro loans: Researcher

BOAO: China's big banks are not delivering on their promise to lend more to the smallest firms and are instead "faking" their micro loans, a researcher said on Saturday, suggesting a government drive to increase micro-lending is struggling.

BOJ to pump $1.4 trillion into economy in unprecedented stimulus

TOKYO (Reuters) - The Bank of Japan unleashed the world's most intense burst of monetary stimulus on Thursday, promising to inject about $1.4 trillion into the economy in less than two years, a radical gamble that sent the yen reeling and bond yields to record lows.

BOJ holds first policy meeting under new governor

TOKYO (AP) — Japan's central bank is holding its first policy meeting under a new governor amid expectations of fresh moves to ease monetary policy and spur a recovery in the world's third-largest economy.

Cyprus president warns of 'difficult days ahead'

NICOSIA: Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades warned on Wednesday of "difficult days ahead" as he swore in a new finance minister for an island struggling to recover from a near financial meltdown and the need for a crippling eurozone bailout.

US economy hopes support global markets

LONDON (AP) — Stock markets rose Tuesday on hopes that improvements in the U.S. economy will make up for the continued gloom in the eurozone, where the unemployment rate hit a new record high.

China issues plan to rejuvenate old industrial base

BEIJING (Reuters) - China will expand an urban regeneration plan for ageing industrial cities as part of efforts to restructure the economy and promote more sustainable growth, the National Development and Reform Commission said on Tuesday.

All eyes on European Central Bank to calm markets after Cyprus bailout

FRANKFURT: The European Central Bank will hold off from cutting rates or announcing any other policy moves at its meeting next week so as to keep up pressure on governments to solve the eurozone's crisis, analysts said.