USA - If the US government assumes greater control over US bank Citigroup or automaker General Motors, that might "trigger" their removal from the Dow index, the Dow Jones Indexes said yesterday.
BRUSSELS - The European Union is in danger of being crushed by the current economic and democratic crises unless Brussels starts to give power back to the member states, says Gisela Stuart.
ISRAEL - Israeli Defence Forces Intelligence Chief General Amos Yadlin confirmed on Sunday, in his monthly briefing to the Cabinet, that ayatollah-controlled Iran has the technology to develop a nuclear bomb - and that it is taking advantage of US President Obama's dialogue policy.
BRUSSELS - "The Lisbon Treaty, when it enters into force, will anchor the European Security and Defence Policy into the European 'acquis'. One can consider that THE EUROPEAN DEFENCE POLICY IS NOW UNDERWAY and its success is a matter of time." - Felipe Gonzalez Marquez, former Prime Minister of Spain
BRUSSELS - The EU is becoming increasingly frustrated with the American car company General Motors, the owner of a number of struggling car companies in Europe, accusing it of attempting to exploit a lack of EU co-ordination to secure greater financial support.
EUROPE - There are several comment pieces about Gordon Brown's trip to meet President Obama, with Philip Stephens arguing in the FT that "if Britain wants to be heard in the White House, surely it must show it has real clout in Europe."
EUROPE - Jacek Rostowski, Poland's Finance Minister, said, "We think a one-size-fits-all approach to the region is not right. What's needed is differentiation. Countries should be helped according to their needs, whether they are in Eastern Europe or in Western Europe."
ISRAEL - United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton placed on Hamas's shoulders the responsibility to return calm to the region by halting rocket attacks on Israel. Speaking at a press conference Tuesday afternoon after conferring with Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, she stated, "The first step is a durable peace, but that can only be achieved IF HAMAS CEASES THE ROCKET ATTACKS."
UK - The Bank of England is to launch its latest attempt to boost the supply of credit and stimulate the UK economy, using £75bn it has, in effect, created. It will offer to buy up to £2bn of government bonds from investment institutions and individuals, in the first of a series of auctions.
UK - Savers in the UK should brace themselves to pay banks for holding their money, experts warned, as the Bank of England said returns have dropped to their lowest ever level.
JERUSALEM — Pope Benedict XVI will show solidarity with Jews and Muslims during his first papal trip to the Holy Land with visits to Jerusalem's Western Wall and the Dome of the Rock, the papal envoy in Jerusalem said Tuesday.
NORTHERN IRELAND - A police officer has been shot dead while on patrol in Northern Ireland, in what has been described as an "evil deed" by "terrorists". The killing came as tributes continued to pour in following the murders of British soldiers Sapper Mark Quinsey, 23, and Sapper Patrick Azimkar, 21, on Saturday.
HONG KONG - A veteran Hong Kong stock commentator burst into tears during a live television broadcast as she saw HSBC's shares plunge dramatically seconds before the end of Monday's trading.
SAN FRANCISCO - It's hard to visualize a water crisis while driving the lush boulevards of Los Angeles, golfing Arizona's green fairways or watching dancing Las Vegas fountains leap more than 20 stories high. So look Down Under. A decade into its worst drought in a hundred years Australia is a lesson of what the American West could become.
USA - The man who predicted the current financial crisis said the US recession could drag on for years without drastic action. Among his solutions: fix the housing market by breaking "every mortgage contract."