The Korea Herald

France, Italy back Alps train plan despite money worries

LYON (AFP) ― France and Italy on Monday vowed to press ahead with a controversial 26 billion euro high-speed rail line through the Alps despite doubts over EU financing for a tunnel at the centre of the project.In a move intended to underline their commitment to the link, transport ministers signed a joint declaration on the financing of the 57-kilometer tunnel, which will account for one third (8.5 billion euros) of the total costs.The accord provides for Italy to cough up 2.9 billion euros ($3

Dec. 4, 2012

U.S. auto sales grow fastest since 2008

CHICAGO (AFP) ― U.S. auto sales posted their fastest clip since January 2008 amid an improving economic outlook and demand for replacement vehicles following the devastating Hurricane Sandy.Total industry sales in November were up 15 percent from a year earlier and came in at an adjusted, annualized rate of 15.5 million vehicles, according to Autodata.Honda led the pack with a 39 percent gain that drove its best ever November results. Rivals Chrysler, Ford and GM managed to post their best Novem

Dec. 4, 2012

Juncker says he will step down as Eurogroup chair

BRUSSELS (AFP) ― Eurogroup head Jean-Claude Juncker announced late Monday that he is stepping down as eurozone finance ministerial chairman as of the end of the month.The Luxembourg prime minister ― Europe’s longest-serving national leader ― said he informed colleagues that he would carry out his stated intention to step down “at the end of this year, or the beginning of next year.”Juncker has held the post as Eurogroup head since 2005, and his current term officially runs until July 17.He has p

Dec. 4, 2012

Juncker says he will step down as Eurogroup chair

IMF officially endorses capital controls in reversal

The International Monetary Fund endorsed nations’ use of capital controls in certain circumstances, making official a shift, which has been in the works for three years, that will guide the fund’s advice. In a reversal of its historic support for unrestricted flows of money across borders, the Washington-based IMF said controls can be useful when countries have little room for economic policies such as lowering interest rates or when surging capital inflows threaten financial stability. Still, i

Dec. 4, 2012

Republicans make new ‘fiscal cliff’ offer to Obama

WASHINGTON (AP) ― Republicans in Congress put forth a “fiscal cliff” counteroffer to President Barack Obama on Monday, calling for cuts to popular social programs and no tax hikes for the wealthy ― an offer that was swiftly panned by the White House, which declared the Republicans still weren’t ready to “get serious’’ as a massive package of automatic tax increases and spending cuts looms. With the clock ticking toward a Dec. 31 deadline, the impasse means the White House and a divided Congress

Dec. 4, 2012

Greece launches $13b bond buyback plan

ATHENS (AP) ― Greece revealed Monday plans to spend up to 10 billion euro ($13 billion) in a bond buyback program that it hopes will help stabilize its mountainous debt. The buyback is part of efforts to reform Greece’s moribund economy and reduce its debt to sustainable levels, and is among steps the country is taking to secure the disbursement of vital international rescue loans. If implemented on time, the new measures “are positive developments, which create plausible expectations of a recov

Dec. 4, 2012

Juncker says he will step down as Eurogroup chair

Eurogroup head Jean-Claude Juncker announced late Monday that he is stepping down as eurozone finance ministerial chairman as of the end of the month.The Luxembourg prime minister -- Europe's longest-serving national leader -- said he informed colleagues that he would carry out his stated intention to step down "at the end of this year, or the beginning of next year."Juncker has held the post as Eurogroup head since 2005, and his current term officially runs until July 17.He has previously been

Dec. 4, 2012

Merkel does not rule out Greek haircut after 2014

BERLIN (AP) ― Germany no longer rules out the possibility of forgiving Greece some of its debt once the country’s finances are in order, Chancellor Angela Merkel said, signaling a softening of her government’s tough stance on Greece.The question of debt forgiveness, or a “haircut,” can be revisited after the current bailout program will be successfully concluded and the government in Athens no longer takes on new debt, Merkel said in an interview with the German Sunday tabloid Bild am Sonntag.Me

Dec. 3, 2012

White House demands GOP state budget aims

WASHINGTON (AP) ― Republicans have to stop using “political math” and say how much they are willing to raise tax rates on the wealthiest 2 percent of Americans and then specify the spending cuts they want, Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner said in an interview that aired Sunday.Just four weeks from the proverbial “fiscal cliff,” House Speaker John Boehner countered that Republicans have a plan for providing as much as $800 billion in new government revenue over the next decade and would consider t

Dec. 3, 2012

White House demands GOP state budget aims

U.K. lawmakers seek end to corporate tax avoidance

LONDON (AP) ― Major multinational companies including Starbucks, Google and Amazon are guilty of immoral tax avoidance, a committee of British lawmakers said Monday, while Starbucks announced it is reviewing its British tax practices in a bid to restore public trust.Parliament’s public accounts committee said the government should “get a grip” and clamp down on multinationals that exploit tax laws to move profits generated in Britain to offshore domains.“Global companies with huge operations in

Dec. 3, 2012

U.K. lawmakers seek end to corporate tax avoidance

Obama taking tough stand on fiscal cliff talks

President Barack Obama is ready to cut federal spending to reduce the nation's spiraling debt but won't make any deal with Republicans until they first agree to raise taxes on wealthy Americans and specify their own demands for reducing government outlays for a vast array of programs, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said in interviews that aired Sunday, explicitly outlining a tough administration negotiating position for avoiding the looming “fiscal cliff.”If the White House and Congress can

Dec. 3, 2012

Siemens’ unit says set to cut 4,700 jobs

FRANKFURT (AFP) ― German light bulb maker Osram, which is soon to be spun off by its parent, engineering giant Siemens, said on Friday it is planning to cut costs by 1 billion euros ($1.3 billion) by 2015.As part of the cost-cutting programme, the group will sell factories, which will reduce the 39,000-strong workforce by about 4,700 jobs, Osram said in a statement.Due to fundamental changes in the lighting sector, Osram had already announced in January 2012 that it would adjust its capacities a

Dec. 2, 2012

Siemens’ unit says set to cut 4,700 jobs

Eurozone unemployment hits record

LONDON (AP) ― Another month, another record unemployment rate for the economy of the 17 European Union countries that use the euro.Figures released Friday by Eurostat, the EU’s statistics office, showed that the recession in the eurozone pushed unemployment up in the currency bloc to 11.7 percent in October, the highest level since the introduction of the euro in 1999.The rise from September’s previous record of 11.6 percent was anticipated after the eurozone returned to recession in the third q

Dec. 2, 2012

No deal in sight 1 month before U.S. ‘fiscal cliff’

WASHINGTON (AP) ― Washington politicians have one month to step back from the so-called “fiscal cliff,” across-the-board tax hikes and austerity-driven spending cuts likely to return the country to recession, and a top Republican declares there has been no real progress after two weeks of talks between President Barack Obama and a divided Congress.The president, who has called for settling the issue before Christmas, visited a Philadelphia suburb to campaign for his demand that any deal include

Dec. 2, 2012

No deal in sight 1 month before U.S. ‘fiscal cliff’

Moody’s cuts rating of ESM rescue fund

WASHINGTON (AFP) ― Moody’s cut the triple-A rating of the European Stability Mechanism rescue fund on Friday by one notch and gave it a negative outlook, citing its earlier downgrade of key ESM backer France.Moody’s said the French downgrade on Nov. 19, a one-step cut also from “Aaa,” reflects its view that there has been “a marginal diminution” in the likelihood that Paris will keep to its financial obligations, including its commitment to support the ESM.For that reason, Moody’s also lowered t

Dec. 2, 2012

No deal in sight 1 month before U.S. 'fiscal cliff'

Washington politicians have one month to step back from the so-called “fiscal cliff,” across-the-board tax hikes and austerity-driven spending cuts likely to return the country to recession, and a top Republican declares there has been no real progress after two weeks of talks between President Barack Obama and a divided Congress.The president, who has called for settling the issue before Christmas, visited a Philadelphia suburb to campaign for his demand that any deal include higher tax rates o

Dec. 1, 2012

Moody's cuts AAA rating of ESM rescue fund

Moody's cut the triple-A rating of the European Stability Mechanism rescue fund on Friday by one notch and gave it a negative outlook, citing its earlier downgrade of key ESM backer France.Moody's said the French downgrade on November 19, a one-step cut also from Aaa, reflects its view that there has been "a marginal diminution" in the likelihood that Paris will keep to its financial obligations, including its commitment to support the ESM.For that reason, Moody's also lowered the ESM's rating t

Dec. 1, 2012

Japan OKs $10.7 billion stimulus

TOKYO (AP) ― Japan unleashed yet another barrage of stimulus at its stagnant economy on Friday as debate over how to revive growth heated up ahead of a general election widely expected to deal a severe blow to the ruling Democratic Party.Fresh data for October showed an uptick in industrial output from the month before, the first increase in four months, but little else in the way of encouragement.The opposition Liberal Democratic Party, which is pushing for more aggressive action to spur growth

Nov. 30, 2012

Spain banks cut thousands of jobs in shake-up

MADRID (AFP) ― Crippled Spanish banks said they would cut thousands of jobs after Brussels on Wednesday gave a green light for a big slice of aid to rescue them with tough conditions.European banking stocks plunged after Bankia, the giant that sparked a 100-billion-euro bailout for Spain’s banks by the eurozone, said it would have to cut 6,000 jobs under the restructuring approved for it and three others.NCG, mother company of one of the other banks, Novogalicia, said in a statement it would lay

Nov. 29, 2012

Spain banks cut thousands of jobs in shake-up

Obama hopes for deal to avoid cliff

WASHINGTON (AP) ― The White House and a key congressional Democrat hinted at fresh concessions on taxes and cuts to Medicare and other government benefit programs Wednesday as bargaining with Republicans lurched ahead to avoid the year-end “fiscal cliff” that threatens to send the economy into a tailspin. Increasing numbers of rank-and-file Republicans also said they were ready to give ground, a boost for House Speaker John Boehner and other party leaders who say they will agree to higher tax re

Nov. 29, 2012