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Greece must do more to tackle debt crisis, EU says

“I am asking the Greek government to announce new measures in the coming days,” Rehn told reporters after talks with Finance Minister George Papaconstantinou. For his part, Papaconstantinou said plans to deal with Greece’s debt burden involved “dangers and risks and some of these dangers are now visible” but the government would not waver in…

Blaming the weather for high US unemployment

That means key US data on jobs and manufacturing for February, which hold big implications for global financial markets, could lead to a befuddled reaction from investors. Confusion will also likely reign in Europe where fears about Greece’s financial situation, potentially exacerbated by speculative activity in bond markets, have kept the Eurozone’s single currency under…

Earthquake to drag on Chile recession recovery

The 8.8-magnitude quake tore up highways and bridges, knocked out power that feeds mines and factories, and shook apart scores of buildings, killing more than 700 people. With details of the extent of the destruction still emerging, economists said it was hard to estimate the degree to which Latin America’s most advanced economy would be…

India lifts borrowing in budget, bonds hit

India will increase market borrowing by 1.3 percent in the next fiscal year, disappointing bond investors, as it counts on a surging economy and a partial rollback of stimulus measures to cut its fiscal deficit. Bond markets reversed earlier gains on worries over the government budget’s plans to increase market borrowing, and some watchers said…

Tearful Toyoda apologises; Japan hopes for recovery

Toyota Motor Corp President Akio Toyoda apologised to US lawmakers probing the automaker’s safety record and ended the day in tears, in what Japanese politicians hoped was a first step towards rebuilding trust in the country’s most valuable company. Toyoda, peppered with questions about a massive recall that has rocked Toyota’s reputation, told lawmakers he…

Saenz: Reform could be dangerous

“If all these elements that are being discussed under the Basel III umbrella are put in place… it would be very onerous, a heavy burden on the profitability of the banking system and the banking industry,” Alfredo Saenz, chief executive of Santander, told UK lawmakers recently. He said it was impossible to accurately predict the…

Kenya economy to grow by 4.5 pct in 2010

The effects of post-election violence, a drought and the global economic crisis pushed Kenya’s economic growth to 1.7 percent in 2008, after expansion of 7.1 percent in the previous year. “Last year, the recovery in tourism, and in some other key sectors, mitigated effects of the severe drought that caused food, water and energy shortages,”…

Pakistani finance minister to resign

Pakistani Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin is to step down this week to focus on his private banking interests, according to reports, following speculation that he would resign.  Tarin, who negotiated an IMF loan in 2008, was not immediately available for comment. In March 2008, a consortium comprising the International Finance Corporation, Bank Muscat, Nomura and…