USA - By the end of the third quarter of fiscal 2012, the new debt accumulated in this fiscal year by the federal government had already exceeded $1 trillion, making this fiscal year the fifth straight in which the federal government has increased its debt by more than a trillion dollars, according to official debt numbers published by the US Treasury. By June 29, the last business day of the third quarter of fiscal 2012, that debt had grown to $15,856,367,214,324.44.

USA - The US Episcopal Church has approved a liturgy for clergy to use in blessing same-sex unions, including gay marriages in states where they are legal, becoming the largest US religious denomination to approve such a ritual. Delegates to its triennial convention voted 171-50 on Tuesday to approve the liturgy, titled “the Witnessing and Blessing of a Lifelong Covenant.” Episcopal bishops had voted overwhelmingly on Monday in favor of the text.

HONG KONG, CHINA - A strong typhoon hit Hong Kong overnight, leaving scores injured, hundreds of trees felled and many flights cancelled or delayed. Typhoon Vicente hit late on Monday, bringing winds of more than 140 km/h (87 mph) and heavy downpours. More than 100 people sought treatment at public hospitals and at least 72 were hospitalised, officials said. Flooding has also been reported in some areas.

GERMANY - The credit ratings agency Moody's has warned the outlook for Germany's AAA credit rating is negative, the first step towards a possible downgrade. The ratings for the eurozone's other top-rated economies, the Netherlands and Luxembourg were also put on negative outlooks. France and Austria lost their AAA ratings earlier this year.

GREECE - Representatives from the troika of international lenders arrive in Greece on Tuesday to assess its progress towards reducing its huge debts. They must decide whether Greece is eligible to receive €31.5 billion - the last tranche of a €130 billion ($158 billion, £102 billion) aid package agreed in March. Athens is behind in its plans to cut spending and debt because its economy is shrinking faster than forecast. The Greek prime minister is expected to ask for more time to repay its loans.

TURKEY - Even though Syrian rebels have seized a number of the border crossings with neighboring Turkey, the Turkish government is apparently not done escalating their own border tensions with the regime, deploying a number of batteries of surface-to-air missiles to the Syrian border today. This follows several rounds of deploying additional troops and tanks to the Syria-Turkish border, following the downing of a Turkish warplane.

ITALY - Italy's financial outlook darkened on Monday amid warnings that 10 cities are at risk of bankruptcy and schools may not be able to open in the autumn because of drastic spending cuts. The cities at risk of running out of money include Naples, Palermo in Sicily and Reggio Calabria, on the toe of the Italian boot, according to the Italian press. "The situation is becoming worse by the day," said Graziano Del Rio, the president of a national association of municipal councils.

GERMANY - After Madrid passed a crushing new round of austerity measures on Thursday, the country erupted in widespread protests. Germany did its part to approve the Spanish banking bailout on the same day, but German editorialists question on Friday whether the aid will have the desired effect at home or abroad.

UK - British consumers will soon feel the squeeze from rising food prices as US crops are hit by America's worst drought in more than half a century, economists warn. Scorching temperatures and extreme dryness are devastating harvests across farmland in the Midwest.

UK - The British Broadcasting Corporation is using its 2012 Olympics website to poke its finger into Israel's eye, refusing to describe Jerusalem as Israel's capital in Israel's country profile.

UK - Britain will be forced to hand over an extra £350 million to the coffers of the EU, whether we like it or not. The UK is expected to vote against a proposal to raise the budget by 2.8% for 2013, but the EU’s system of qualified majority voting makes it unlikely the increase will be thrown out. The Netherlands and Sweden are expected to join Britain’s call for more fiscal prudence, but this will not be enough to overturn the countries who will vote in favour of a more loaded gravy train.

SYRIA - With the Annan peace plan shredded as the two sides fight to the bitter end, Syria’s descent into civil war is causing outside powers increasing concern. Their involvement is already considerable, with Iran and Russia backing the regime, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey giving military and logistical support to the rebels, and a wide range of governments squeezing the crumbling economy through sanctions. The latest worry is that, as Syria falls apart, ITS LARGE STOCKS OF CHEMICAL AND BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS COULD FALL INTO TERRORIST HANDS.

USA - James Holmes, the alleged "Joker" gunman, described his fascination with altered states of mind in a lecture to other students, and dosed up on prescription medication before the atrocity, it emerged on Sunday. The first video footage of the suspect showed him as an awkward, nervous 18-year-old giving a talk at a science summer camp in San Diego on "temporal illusions".

RUSSIA - Customs officials have stopped 300 radioactive cars from getting into Russia from Japan since the Fukushima nuclear disaster last year, as part of an ongoing monitoring operation. "We have inspected 150,000 vehicles as part of this monitoring mission. Three hundred units that have been seized indicated a level of radioactivity,” said Gennady Onishchenko, the head of Russia’s consumer rights watchdog.

USA - The recent slowdown in US economic growth is forcing the Federal Reserve to consider something for which it has always set the bar very high: a third round of quantitative easing. A decision on whether to launch another round of asset purchases remains in the balance as the central bank wrestles with a complicated economic outlook and uncertainty about the costs and benefits of its easing tools.