Greece wants pan-European 'New Deal' for growth: finance minister

ATHENS (AFP) - Greece's new Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis said Wednesday he wants to see a pan-European deal to encourage growth. The new anti-austerity Syriza-led government wants "a pan-European 'New Deal' that will lead Europe to a reboot," Varoufakis told reporters as he took over the post.

Jan. 28, 2015

Fed is expected to remain 'patient' about a first rate hike

WASHINGTON (AP) -- As the Federal Reserve ends its latest policy meeting Wednesday, it is widely expected to repeat the pledge it made in December: That it will be "patient" in raising interest rates from record lows. That pledge could endure well into 2015. The U.S. economy has steadily improved. Yet inflation has dipped further below the Fed's target rate, thanks to plunging oil prices and a surging dollar. The stronger dollar makes foreign goods cheaper in the United States. The statement tha

Jan. 28, 2015

Vatican foiled over bid to hide Swiss bank data

A Swiss court rejected Monday an appeal by the Vatican’s bank to keep secret information from one of its Swiss bank accounts suspected of being used for fraud.Judges at Switzerland’s federal criminal court allowed the transfer of most information sought by prosecutors in Italy from the account held by the Vatican bank, officially known as the Institute for Religious Works, the daily Le Temps reported.Italian prosecutors suspect the account was used in 2007 and 2008 by third parties to launder as

Jan. 28, 2015

U.N. report says poverty rises in Venezuela

A new report says that poverty is on the rise in Venezuela and efforts across Latin America to boost incomes are stalling.The report by the United Nations’ regional economic office in Chile says that in Venezuela poverty rose from 25 percent in 2012, to 32 percent in 2013. Paraguay, El Salvador and Colombia saw the biggest declines in poverty but overall the region showed little progress as economies slowed in the wake of the global financial crisis. The U.N. estimates that 28 percent of Latin A

Jan. 28, 2015

China’s industrial profits fall most since 2011

Chinese industrial companies’ profits fell the most in at least three years last month, underscoring the challenge facing the nation’s former growth drivers as the economy slows and commodity prices slump.Industrial profits declined 8 percent in December from a year earlier, the National Bureau of Statistics said in Beijing on Tuesday. That’s the biggest drop since at least October 2011, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.China’s old growth drivers are faltering, weighed by overcapacity and

Jan. 28, 2015

‘BOJ may have leeway in meeting inflation target’

Japanese Economics Minister Akira Amari said on Tuesday that the Bank of Japan could have some leeway in meeting its 2 percent inflation target, given declines in oil prices.Amari, speaking to reporters after a cabinet meeting, also said neither the government nor the central bank has been committed to a rigid timeframe in achieving the price goal.Cheap oil compounds the challenge for the BOJ’s aim of hitting its 2 percent inflation goal around the coming fiscal year that starts in April, which

Jan. 28, 2015

S&P cuts Russia rating to ‘junk’

MOSCOW (AFP) ― Standard and Poor’s stripped Russia of its investment-grade rating on Monday, cutting it to “junk” status with a warning of weak growth.“The downgrade reflects our view that Russia’s monetary policy flexibility has become more limited and its economic growth prospects have weakened,” the ratings agency said in a statement announcing the one-notch cut to a “BB+” rating.The plunge in oil prices and Western sanctions over Moscow’s role in the Ukraine war have pummelled the Russian ec

Jan. 27, 2015

Microsoft profit dips as revenue rises

SAN FRANCISCO (AFP) ― Microsoft on Monday reported that its quarterly profit dipped as revenue increased with help from sales of Surface tablets, Xbox One consoles and cloud services.Profit fell 10 percent from a year ago to $5.9 billion while revenue hit $26.5 billion in the quarter ended on Dec. 31, and chief executive Satya Nadella said the company’s transformation is on target.“We are taking bold steps forward across our business, and specifically with Windows 10, to deliver new experiences,

Jan. 27, 2015

U.S. deficit to shrink to lowest level of Obama presidency

WASHINGTON (AP) ― Solid economic growth will help the U.S. budget deficit shrink this year to its lowest level since President Barack Obama took office, according to congressional estimates released Monday.The Congressional Budget Office says the deficit will be $468 billion for the budget year that ends in September. That’s slightly less than last year’s $483 billion deficit.As a share of the economy, CBO says this year’s deficit will be slightly below the historical average of the past 50 year

Jan. 27, 2015

Google boss Schmidt: Internet will ‘disappear’

DAVOS (AFP) ― Google boss Eric Schmidt predicted that the Internet will soon be so pervasive in every facet of our lives that it will effectively “disappear” into the background.Speaking to the business and political elite at the World Economic Forum at Davos, Schmidt said: “There will be so many sensors, so many devices, that you won’t even sense it, it will be all around you.”“It will be part of your presence all the time. Imagine you walk into a room and ... you are interacting with all the t

Jan. 25, 2015

Thousands march in Venezuela over economic crisis, shortages

CARACAS (AFP) ― Demonstrators against Venezuela’s economic crisis ― facing sky-high inflation and shortages of food and consumer goods ― took to the streets in their thousands Saturday, banging pots and demanding an end to President Nicolas Maduro’s term.Opposition leaders, fed up with shortages of milk, coffee, sugar, meat, toilet paper, diapers, deodorant and corn meal, and with Maduro’s refusal to overhaul the increasingly state-managed economy, say the elected socialist should go.Ex-lawmaker

Jan. 25, 2015