April 23, 2014

German growth to slow after strong first quarter: finance ministry

(Reuters) - German economic growth will slow in the second quarter after an unusually mild winter gave Europe's largest economy a boost in the first three months of 2014, the Finance Ministry monthly report said on Tuesday.

April 22, 2014

Germany's Merkel Gets Tough on Russia

Angela Merkel wasn’t in a hurry to inflict economic pain on Moscow. Cautious, pragmatic, and mindful of her country’s business ties to Russia, the German chancellor doggedly tried to defuse the Ukraine crisis through back-channel diplomacy and frequent phone calls with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

April 21, 2014

Bankers win friends again in Europe with lure of easy money

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Jacques de Larosiere says he is an isolated and modest man. Yet the 84-year-old former head of the International Monetary Fund is one of the most influential voices in European and global finance.

April 20, 2014

Euro zone inflation sticks in 'danger zone', keeps ECB under pressure

(Reuters) - A drop in March euro zone inflation to its lowest level since November 2009 was confirmed on Wednesday, keeping pressure on the European Central Bank to intervene if prices do not rebound.

April 19, 2014

Did Europe misdiagnose debt crisis and make it worse?

(Reuters) - At the height of the euro zone debt crisis, with Portugal's economy nearing collapse, the European Commission told the government in Lisbon that it had to slash wages if it was ever going to boost competitiveness and grow again.