Germany's bickering Eurosceptics squander chance to cash in on Greek crisis

BERLIN (Reuters) - As Greece stumbles towards bankruptcy, a Eurosceptic party bent on breaking up the euro zone should be enjoying its golden hour; but instead the Alternative for Germany (AfD) is mired in such bitter personal feuding it teeters on the verge of collapse itself.

Analysis - Will Europe's banking 'big bang' loosen lending?

PARIS (Reuters) - In the biggest advance in European integration since the launch of the euro in 1999, the European Central Bank will take charge of supervising banks from Helsinki to Lisbon in November after subjecting their books to unprecedented scrutiny.

EU leaders signal shift from austerity of euro crisis

(Reuters) - In the latest shift away from the austerity of the euro zone crisis, European Union leaders signaled at a summit that they were ready to give member states extra time to consolidate their budgets as long as they pressed ahead with economic reforms.

IMF's Lagarde calls for more ECB stimulus: paper

(Reuters) - Christine Lagarde, managing director of the International Monetary Fund, has repeated calls for more stimulus from the European Central Bank to keep at bay the risk of persistently low inflation in the euro zone.

Race for top EU jobs turns murkier before elections

PARIS (Reuters) - The race for the European Union's top leadership jobs has turned murkier with news that Finland's prime minister is stepping down to seek a European role while France is touting its former finance minister as its nominee for a European Commission post.

Lower-rated euro zone debt rallies on improving economic data

LONDON, Jan 3 (Reuters) - Lower-rated euro zone bonds rallied on Friday as a drop in Spanish unemployment and a move by Portugal's president to side with the government on the 2014 budget added to signs the region is coming out of its crisis.

Euro zone bonds steady as markets look for ECB hints

LONDON, Nov 7 (Reuters) - Euro zone bonds were mostly steady on Thursday with investors wary of making portfolio adjustments before a European Central Bank policy update they will examine for any hints of further monetary easing ahead.

German consumer morale hits highest level in 6 years: GfK

BERLIN: German consumer confidence rose to its highest level in six years heading into October, supporting expectations strong consumer spending will help Europe's largest economy to post moderate growth in 2013.

Economy Is a Casualty in Germany's 'Noncampaign'

BERLIN — Germans sleep better, Bismarck once said, when they don’t know how sausages and laws are made. A century and a half later, Chancellor Angela Merkel seems to be modeling an election campaign on the musings of Bismarck, the “Iron Chancellor.”

UK banks fear cyber attack more than euro crisis: BoE's Haldane

LONDON (Reuters) - Worries over hacking and other cyber attacks has pushed aside the euro zone crisis as the top risk for Britain's banks and they must do more to protect themselves, a senior Bank of England official said on Wednesday.

China PM says stable euro in best interests of China and world

BERLIN (Reuters) - China's Premier Li Keqiang said on Sunday a stable euro was in the best interests of China and the whole world.

Every cent helps: euro zone explores scrapping smallest coins

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Saving pocket change may not end the euro zone crisis, but the European Commission hopes that scrapping the smallest coins could help penny-pinching governments cut costs.

The Euro Zone Crisis Is Back - on Multiple Fronts

Europe's finance ministers meeting in Dublin on Friday are facing a renewed crisis on multiple fronts,with a backlash against austerity acting as a gloomy backdrop for negotiations over bailout extensions for Portugal and Ireland, while tackling Cyprus's botched bailout and growing worries about Slovenia.

Most Germans expect euro zone crisis to worsen: poll

BERLIN (Reuters) - Nearly two thirds of Germans expect the euro zone crisis to worsen and almost half fear for their savings, according to an opinion poll released on Friday, amid rising concerns that Cyprus may be forced to quit the common currency.

Analysis: No respite for euro zone in long rebalancing slog

LONDON (Reuters) - The euro zone crisis is entering a new, treacherous phase for governments, which can only cross their fingers that slow-burn reforms will pay off before voters get fed up with austerity and high unemployment.

UK factory activity unexpectedly rebounds in December: PMI

LONDON (Reuters) - British factory activity jumped unexpectedly in December to grow at its fastest pace since September 2011, a survey showed on Wednesday, raising the chance that the economy eked out growth at the end of 2012.

Euro zone crisis drags down European ad spending: report

LONDON (Reuters) - The euro zone crisis has left Western Europe the only world region to see a fall in advertising spending this year, market research group ZenithOptimedia said.

Angela Merkel's toughest political ally turns milder on Greece

MUNICH: German Chancellor Angela Merkel appears to have convinced the toughest audience in her political camp that Greece should be given the benefit of the doubt, and possibly more time to meet its painful savings targets.

Analysis: Hollande's growth goal gutted by deficit plans

PARIS (Reuters) - French President Francois Hollande has set himself a deadline to turn around the economy by the end of 2014, but having hamstrung the effort with tax rises to meet deficit targets, economists doubt his growth goals will ever fly.

Euro Crisis Is Still US Regional Banks Best M&A Target

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- The euro zone crisis may be the best opportunity for U.S. regional banks to grow the top and bottom line that's come around in a while.