…vent – their debts worth more than the value of everything they own – and will be facing bankruptcy. Foreign lenders and business partners of Greek companies will be looking at big losses. 4. Sovereign debt crisis Sovereign debt is the money a government borrows from its own citizens or from investors around the world. But if Greece leaves the eurozone, setting a precedent that such a…
…has denied reports that an announcement on a European rescue plan for its banks is close. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is estimating that Spain’s banks need a cash injection of at least 40 billion Euros ($50 billion). The IMF said on Friday that a “stress test” showed Spain’s financial sector was well managed but “vulnerable”. The eurozone finance minis…
ion”. UK Chancellor George Osborne said the aim of protecting the interests of EU states not signing up to the banking union “has been achieved”. Under the deal, banks with more than 30 billion euros ($39 billion) in assets will be placed under the oversight of the European Central Bank. The ECB would also be able to intervene with smaller lenders and borrowers at the first sign…
es not take into account any future plans by the lenders themselves to raise their own capital. The country’s economy minister Fernando Jimenez Latorre indicated that it may need to borrow about 40 billion from the eurozone rescue funds. Bankia was found to be the bank most in need of additional capital, requiring 24.7 billion euros. It was followed by Catalunya Bank (10.8 billion euros), No…
…tiations. New rules on prudent banking are seen as vital to bolster the euro, as bank failures triggered the financial crash. Under the deal expected to take effect in March 2014, banks with more than 30 billion euros ($39 billion) in assets will be placed under ECB oversight. The ECB would also be able to intervene with smaller lenders and borrowers at the first sign of trouble. Speaking after th…
Spain’s decision to request a loan of up to 100 billion Euros ($125 billion) from eurozone funds to help shore up its struggling banks has won broad support. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said the bailout was big enough to restore credibility to Spain’s banks. Washington welcomed the measure as a vital step towards the “financial union” of the eurozone. The move wa…
The Euro and stock markets have boosted in Asia after a deal to shore up Spain’s troubled banks eased concerns about a European currency break up. In Asian trade, the euro rose 1% versus the US dollar and Japanese yen. Stock indexes in Japan and Hong Kong rose 2%. On Saturday, eurozone ministers agreed to lend Spain up to 100 billion Euros ($125 billion) to help its banks. Analysts said the…
exempt savers with less than 20,000 euros, but a 6.75% charge on deposits of 20,000-100,000 euros and a 9.9% charge for those above 100,000 euros remained. However, parliament rejected the deal, with 36 MPs voting against it, 19 abstaining and none in favour. Protesters outside parliament reacted with joy at the decision. Cyprus has attracted money through its lower taxes, with Russians holding b…
t risk of deposits outflow, with possible outcome the collapse of the credit institutions” as the reasons for the restrictions. Depositors in Cypriot banks with more than 100,000 euros could see 40% of their funds converted into bank shares, while those with less than 100,000 euros will not lose any funds – but face limits on what funds they can access. Speaking to the Financial Times,…
…deal to shore up the euro. The Spanish prime minister called for Thursday’s European Union summit to “dispel doubts” about the euro. The Italian and Spanish indexes both closed about 4% down. The fall on Spain’s Ibex index was exacerbated by a Reuters report that the Moody’s credit rating agency is planning to downgrade Spain’s banks. Earlier, Spain formally req…
s rate rose to 26.2% from 25.8% the previous month, and in Italy it rose to 11.1% from 10.8%. In contrast, unemployment in Germany held steady at 5.4% of the labor force, while in Austria it fell from 4.4% to just 4.3%. Data earlier this month showed that the eurozone had returned to a shallow recession in the three months to September, shrinking 0.1% during the quarter, following a 0.2% contracti…
European Union leaders have agreed to set up a single eurozone banking supervisor – a major step towards a banking union. A legislative framework is to be in place by January 1st 2013, with the body starting work later next year. The European Central Bank-led mechanism will have the power to intervene in any bank within the eurozone. The deal appears to be a compromise between France and Ge…
Eurozone finance ministers have decided to lend Spain 30 billion Euros ($37 billion) this month to help its troubled banks. It will be the first installment of a bailout of up to 100 billion Euros, which was agreed in June. The ministers will need to get approval from their own parliaments and hope to make the payment by the end of July. The eurozone finance ministers also agreed to extend the 20…
…land and seek outside help. Spain has to find at least 80 billion Euros ($100 billion) to strengthen its banks’ capital buffers. A key test will come on Thursday, with Spain due to auction up to 2 billion Euros of bonds. Spain's economy minister Luis de Guindos has dampened speculation that the country is about to seek a bailout of its bank sector Spain is keen to avoid having to ask fo…
credit ratings of 16 Spanish banks late on Thursday. It also cut the debt rating on Santander UK, a subsidiary of the Spanish banking giant. However, shares in Santander reversed early losses to trade 3% higher, and Bankia shares jumped 9% following Thursday’s 14% slump. Moody’s said there were several reasons behind the downgrade, including Spain’s slide back into recession, the…
…ebit and or credit cards are allowed up to 5,000 euros per person per month. Transactions of 5,000-200,000 euros will be reviewed by a specially established committee, with applications for those over 200,000 euros needing individual approval. Travellers leaving the country will only be allowed to take 1,000 euros with them. On Wednesday night, hundreds of protesters rallied outside the presidenti…
Cyprus banks are to reopen on Tuesday, March 26, although the two at the centre of the crisis, Bank of Cyprus and Laiki, will remain shut until Thursday, March 28. President Nicos Anastasiades has said temporary limits will be placed on financial transactions after a bailout deal imposing a tax on bank deposits. He said “very temporary restrictions” would be put on capital flows, but…
se overall lending capacity by 60 billion Euros • Targeting 60 billion Euros of unused structural funds to help small enterprises and create youth employment • A pilot launch of EU project bonds worth 4.5 billion Euros for infrastructure improvements, focusing on energy, transport and broadband. In Brussels, both Italy and Spain were pushing the eurozone bloc to agree steps to reduce the interest…
…inance Minister Anton Siluanov, speaking after talks with his Michael Sarris, said Russian investors were not interested in Cyprus’ offshore gas reserves. Russia gave Cyprus an emergency loan of 2.5 billion euros in 2011. Anton Siluanov said that no new Russian loan had been on the table with Michael Sarris because of limits imposed by the EU on Cypriot borrowing. However, Russian PM Dmitry…
ere put in place when banks reopened on March 28 after they were closed until a bailout agreement. A new decree, which will remain in place for seven days, lifts all restrictions on transactions under 300,000 euros, a move aimed at helping cash-starved domestic businesses which had difficulty paying suppliers and employees. Also, the daily limit on transactions outside of Cyprus not requiring prio…
ell 2.7%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng and Australia’s ASX 200 dipped 2%.Many major banks in Italy, France and Spain, some of the eurozone’s most indebted countries, were down between 4% and 5%. In France, Credit Agricole and Societe Generale were the worst affected, losing about 4.5%, while Spain’s BBVA lost a similar amount. In Germany, Deutsche Bank was down 3%, while Com…
sitors with less than 100,000 euros in Cyprus accounts would have to pay a one-time tax of 6.75%. Those with sums over that threshold would pay 9.9%. The president may want to lower the former rate to 3%, while raising the levy on the larger depositors to 12.5%. An EU source told Agence France-Presse there could be a three-way split on the level of levy, grouped into accounts holding less than 100…
…d: “Everyone should weigh their words very carefully.” Earlier, Christian Social Union leader Alexander Dobrindt, an ally of Angela Merkel, said he expected Greece to leave the eurozone in 2013. He said he saw “no way round” a Greek exit. He also called the European Central Bank (ECB) chief Mario Draghi “Europe’s currency forger”. His party, a junior coali…
as warning that not too many quick decisions should be expected from the finance ministers’ meeting, which is supposed to add detail to the agreements from the eurozone leaders’ summit on 29 June. The communiqué from that summit said it expected the finance ministers “to implement these decisions by 9 July”, although many analysts say that now looks optimistic. Leaders hav…
…ed at Stirling University before publishing his first novel, The Wasp Factory, in 1984. He has alternated between mainstream and science fiction novels, which he wrote under the name Iain M. Banks. In 2008, Iain Banks was named one of the 50 greatest British writers since 1945 in a list compiled by The Times. News of his illness was described as “terribly sad” by First Minister Alex Sa…
EU bans refillable bottles and dipping bowls of olive oil at restaurant tablesStarting with 2014, the European Commission will ban the use of refillable bottles and dipping bowls of olive oil at restaurant tables. From 1 January 2014, restaurants may…
DSM-5: Controversial updates to mental health manual to be publishedDSM-5, an update to one of the most important manuals in mental health - known as the bible of psychiatry - is to be published later. Controversy and criticism has…
Recipe: Super slimming mushroom inspired mealMushroom-rich diet followed by Katy Perry, Kelly Osbourne and Roxanne Pallett can help women lose weight without shrinking their bust. The mushroom plan is being touted as…
Mushroom diet: M-Plan promises to help women lose weight still keeping their curvesThe mushroom plan is being touted as the latest weapon for savvy celeb dieters who want to shed pounds quickly but still keep some of their curves. Dubbed the “M-Plan”,…
Why do women’s feet swell during pregnancy?Roger W. Harms, M.D., leading obstetrician at the Mayo Clinic, explains why women’s feet swell during pregnancy. “Your body produces and retains more fluid during…
Embryonic stem cells: Milestone in medical human cloningUS scientists announce that human cloning has been used to produce early embryos, marking a "significant step" for medicine. The cloned embryos were used as a source of stem…
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