Reuters: Top News

Violence offers glimpse of Greece's reform challenge

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 10:01:33 GMT

ATHENS (Reuters) - Greeks swept rocks and broken glass from the streets of Athens on Monday after a night of violence that gave lawmakers a taste of the challenge they face in implementing a deeply unpopular austerity bill demanded by the country's foreign lenders.

Olympus expects net loss, but core business seen unscathed

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 09:57:12 GMT

TOKYO (Reuters) - Scandal-hit Olympus Corp on Monday forecast a $410 million (259 million pounds) full-year loss due largely to its ailing camera operations, but strength in its endoscope business suggested its core division would emerge from the debacle unscathed and its president said it might try to go it alone without seeking outside capital.

Banks missed lending targets to SME's in 2011

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 09:50:56 GMT

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's top banks fell short of their government targets to lend to small businesses last year, Bank of England data showed on Monday, dealing a blow to the Conservative-led coalition's hopes to get credit flowing through the economy to boost growth.

Greek progress lifts appetite for euro, shares

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 09:46:56 GMT

LONDON (Reuters) - Relief over the passing of austerity measures by the Greek parliament saw bank shares lead European stocks higher on Monday, while the euro also gained even though more steps are needed before the shadow of a messy debt default can be lifted.

Arabs back Syria opposition; Homs bombardment resumes

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 09:27:54 GMT

AMMAN/CAIRO (Reuters) - Syrian forces resumed their bombardment of the city of Homs on Monday after Arab countries called for U.N. peacekeepers and pledged their firm support for the opposition battling President Bashar al-Assad.

Israel GDP growth to ease, needs to cut debt - IMF

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 09:14:44 GMT

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel's economy is expected to grow slightly less than 3 percent in 2012, accelerating to 3.75 percent in 2013, the International Monetary Fund said on Monday, urging the government to focus on cutting public debt.

BAA says Heathrow losing out on China traffic

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 08:38:28 GMT

LONDON, FEB 13 - British airport operator BAA said capacity constraints at London's Heathrow airport led to a fall in passenger traffic to China last month with competing European hubs picking up the slack.

China doesn't want to "buy up" Europe - report

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 08:29:58 GMT

BEIJING (Reuters) - China has no intention of "buying up" a debt-ridden Europe and any help Beijing offers will be for purely economic reasons, a top state-run newspaper said on Monday ahead of a China-EU summit.

Tensions grow over EU aviation emissions

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 07:33:08 GMT

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Global planemaker Airbus joined a chorus of concern that a European scheme to charge airlines for carbon emissions risks triggering a full-blown trade war, with implications for plane deals and even Europe's crippling sovereign debt crisis.

Apple launches new legal attack on Samsung phones

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 07:09:25 GMT

(Reuters) - Apple Inc raised the stake in an intensifying global patent battle with Samsung Electronics by targeting the latest model using Google's fast growing Android software, a move which may affect other Android phone makers.

Japan's big GDP drop a worry for PM tax plan

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 06:59:09 GMT

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's economy shrank much more-than-expected in the fourth quarter, as Thai floods, a strong yen and weak demand hurt exports, casting doubt on hopes for a quick pick up in activity that could bolster government plans to raise the sales tax.

Adele triumphs at Grammys with six wins

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 06:34:07 GMT

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Soul singer Adele triumphed in her return to music's stage on Sunday, scooping up six Grammys and winning every category in which she was nominated including album of the year for "21" and best record with "Rolling In the Deep."

Venezuela's Capriles wins primary, seeks to beat Chavez

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 06:16:02 GMT

CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuelan opposition leader Henrique Capriles easily won a primary election on Sunday to become the unity candidate against President Hugo Chavez, vowing to end 13 years of socialist rule that he said has left the OPEC nation in crisis.

CBI sees recovery, no more stimulus from Bank of England

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 05:57:37 GMT

LONDON (Reuters) - Economic growth will gather pace in the second half of this year, making it unlikely the Bank of England will give the economy another cash injection, a leading business lobby said on Monday.

Family, fans mourn Whitney Houston with tears, prayers

Sun, 12 Feb 2012 23:45:46 GMT

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - From the New Jersey church where Whitney Houston's singing career first took flight to the Beverly Hills hotel where her life abruptly ended, family and fans of the pop diva expressed their grief on Sunday with prayer, tears and raw anguish.

Apple launches new legal attack on Samsung phones

Sun, 12 Feb 2012 23:37:29 GMT

(Reuters) - Apple Inc has asked a federal court in California to block Samsung Electronics Co Ltd from selling its new Galaxy Nexus smartphones, alleging patent violations.

Greek lawmakers approve austerity bill as Athens burns

Sun, 12 Feb 2012 23:30:21 GMT

ATHENS (Reuters) - The Greek parliament approved a deeply unpopular austerity bill to secure a second EU/IMF bailout and avoid national bankruptcy, as buildings burned across central Athens and violence spread around the country.

Sun arrests pile pressure on Murdoch media empire

Sun, 12 Feb 2012 23:21:21 GMT

LONDON (Reuters) - Rupert Murdoch is under pressure over his Sun tabloid after the arrests of several senior staff in a corruption probe, but whistleblowers inside his media empire may pose more of a threat than the public outrage that forced the closure of its sister paper.

Silence is golden as The Artist scoops 7 BAFTAs

Sun, 12 Feb 2012 22:58:38 GMT

LONDON (Reuters) - Black-and-white turned to gold as silent movie "The Artist" won seven BAFTA awards including best film at a ceremony in London on Sunday, raising expectations of a strong showing at the Academy Awards.

Avalanche kills 9 in Kosovo as freeze grips Europe

Sun, 12 Feb 2012 19:34:38 GMT

PRISTINA/WARSAW (Reuters) - Nine people were killed when an avalanche hit the village of Restelica in southern Kosovo, officials said Sunday, adding to more than 500 killed in snow and bitter cold across Europe in the past two weeks.

Arab League backs Syria opposition

Sun, 12 Feb 2012 19:16:45 GMT

CAIRO (Reuters) - The Arab League threw its support on Sunday firmly behind the opposition mounting an uprising against Syria's President Bashar al-Assad, and called for the U.N. Security Council to send peacekeepers to halt bloodshed.

Irish banker sees government improving bailout terms

Sun, 12 Feb 2012 15:31:22 GMT

DUBLIN (Reuters) - Ireland stands a good chance of persuading Europe to reduce the cost of its bank rescue through refinancing some 30 billion euros (25 billion pounds) worth of IOUs pumped into the former Anglo Irish Bank, the lender's chairman said on Sunday.

Airlines urge U.N. deal to avert carbon trade war

Sun, 12 Feb 2012 13:38:35 GMT

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Global airlines called on Sunday for a U.N.-brokered deal to prevent a row over aviation emissions between China and the European Union spilling into a damaging trade war.

Rebranding Sarkozy: Too sullied a sell for 2012?

Sun, 12 Feb 2012 13:24:06 GMT

PARIS (Reuters) - In February 2007, a fiery Nicolas Sarkozy had millions convinced that he - a go-getter abandoned as an infant by his Hungarian father - would break with the past, end chronic unemployment and restore a sense of pride to France.

Vodafone eyes C&W Worldwide bid - paper

Sun, 12 Feb 2012 12:35:27 GMT

LONDON (Reuters) - British mobile phone operator Vodafone is considering a 700 million pound ($1.10 billion) bid for Cable & Wireless Worldwide although no offer is imminent, the Sunday Times reported, citing industry and City of London sources.