French economy minister urges alternative to German austerity

(Reuters) - The time has come for France to resist Germany's "obsession" with austerity and promote alternative policies across the euro zone that support household consumption, firebrand French Economy Minister Arnaud Montebourg said on Sunday.

Blow for Scottish nationalists as BAE says split would destroy jobs

The defence giant BAE Systems has finally warned that Scottish independence could threaten thousands of jobs north of the border, after months of refusing to comment on September's vote.

Scottish independence: Treasury claims taxes could rise by £1,000

Taxes in Scotland could rise by £1,000 per person per year if it leaves the UK, a British government minister says.

Ireland set to exit EU-IMF bailout on December 15: PM

DUBLIN: Ireland is on track to exit its strict international bail-out programme in December, Prime Minister Enda Kenny announced, although he warned the country still had a way to go to recover from the global economic crisis.

No clear path to ending U.S. debt limit, spending impasse

(Reuters) - U.S. House of Representatives Republicans on Thursday refused to give in to President Barack Obama's demand for straightforward bills to run the government beyond September 30 and to increase borrowing authority to avoid a historic default.

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.

Analysis: Economy would dodge bullet for now under fiscal deal

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A deal worked out by Senate leaders to avoid the "fiscal cliff" was far from any "grand bargain" of deficit reduction measures.

Fragile Egypt economy overshadows Mursi's vote win

CAIRO (Reuters) - Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi will have little time to savour victory in pushing through a new constitution as it may have cost the Islamist leader broader support for urgent austerity measures needed to fix the creaking economy.

ECB'S Praet says France must cut spending and reform

PARIS (Reuters) - France must cut spending to meet its budget deficit target and undertake structural reforms to boost competitiveness, European Central Bank Executive Board Member Peter Praet said on Tuesday.

Hopes rise for "fiscal cliff" deal as Obama, Boehner meet

(Reuters) - President Barack Obama and top Republican John Boehner met at the White House on Monday as hopes rose that Washington will be able to head off steep tax hikes and spending cuts that could push the economy into recession next year.

Obama says he's ready to work with Republicans to avoid "fiscal cliff"

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama, accused by Republican House Speaker John Boehner of pushing the country toward the "fiscal cliff," said on Saturday he was ready to work with congressional Republicans on a comprehensive plan to cut budget deficits as long it included higher taxes on the wealthy.

UK Treasury chief juggles budget as outlook dims

LONDON (AP) — Britain's Treasury chief George Osborne said Wednesday that the recovery of the U.K. economy is taking longer than he had hoped and warned more spending cuts will be needed to get public finances under control.

Greek bailout deal is a classic fudge – but should work for now

There was something for everyone in the latest Greek debt deal. Athens gets enough money to stop the country going bust, Angela Merkel has done enough to keep Greece in the euro until after next year's German elections.

Finance leaders to address global economic threats

WASHINGTON (AP) — When global finance ministers meet this week in Tokyo, they'll confront a triple challenge: Economic troubles in three major regions are threatening the world's economy.

Fed's Fisher says U.S. "drowning in unemployment"

RICHARDSON, Texas (Reuters) - The United States is "drowning in unemployment," its economy is running at stall speed and inflation is "not a problem," but easier monetary policy is not the answer, one of the Federal Reserve's most hawkish policymakers said on Friday.

Recession in US likely without budget accord: Analysts

WASHINGTON: A new recession is likely if a stalemate over tax and spending cuts continues between Democrats and Republicans, according to fresh, dire projections by the nonpartisan US Congressional Budget Office.

US fiscal cliff another Y2K, claim UBS analysts

America's impending "fiscal cliff" is nothing more than another "Y2K" and whoever wins the Presidential election later this year will be forced into averting financial crisis, according to analysts.

Government must find extra £17bn of cuts, OBR warns

Britain must find an additional £17bn of spending cuts or tax rises to help defuse an impending demographic timebomb, the government's official forecaster has warned.

Sudanese protest over cuts amid security crackdown

KHARTOUM (Reuters) - Hundreds of Sudanese joined anti-government demonstrations in Khartoum on Saturday, witnesses and activists said, pushing protests against tough spending cuts into a second week despite a security crackdown.

German Finance Minister eyes growth measures for Greece

BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany is ready to consider additional measures to promote growth in Greece but the struggling economy must still carry out agreed reforms, German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said in an interview with the Welt am Sonntag weekly on Saturday.