Logo of the Portuguese bank BPI The Portuguese bank BPI has reportedly asked for 1.3 billion euros in public aid to comply with the principles laid out by the European Banking Authority, as the financial crisis in the eurozone seems to be deepening. Banco BPI, which is Portugal’s third largest listed bank, said on Monday that it would also raise 200 million euros from private investors. The news... 

Ireland is voting in a referendum on an EU austerity pact. If Dublin does not accept tough budget deficit obligations, it would be a kiss goodbye to EU rescue money, which could be followed by default and a eurozone exit. The mooted European Fiscal Pact was initiated by Germany and France. If approved, it would oblige Dublin to strictly control its budget deficit, which reached 13.1 per cent last... 

A euro coin with the Spanish national flag in the background. The European Commission says Spain is on top of the list of the eurozone 12 critical economies as new reports show investors flee Spain amid the deepening financial crisis. Affected by Greece’s economic woes, the Commission on Wednesday listed Spain and Cyprus as two European states in “very serious” trouble. “Spain faces... 

Britain’s Home Office is drawing up contingency plans to restrict the number of economic migrants from Greece and other European Union nations in case the euro collapses. ­EU rules allow citizens to work anywhere in any country in the single market, including the UK, with the exception of new members Romania and Bulgaria. People looking for work abroad may see Britain as an attractive option as... 

Ten years ago, the world’s youngest and most ambitious currency – the euro – became materialized. Twelve countries of the European Union launched the new monetary unit in circulation. The new currency was born in one of the largest cities of Germany – Frankfurt-am-Main – where the European Central Bank is headquartered. Citizens of Austria, Belgium, Germany, Ireland,... 

Italy's Prime Minister Mario Monti Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti has pointed to the possibility of calling in the army to deal with the violent protests in the country over the government’s economic policies. Monti raised alert levels on Sunday at some sensitive sites across Italy to handle the recent violence that has hit the country. Interior Minister Anna Maria Cancellieri also said on... 

Francois Hollande on giant screen behind supporters after winning the second round of the presidential election on May 6, 2012 in Tulle, France First official results show Socialist Party candidate Francois Hollande has defeated incumbent President Nicolas Sarkozy, who managed to secure only 48.1 per cent of the votes. Sarkozy has conceded defeat, asking that Hollande’s victory be respected. The... 

Jobseekers queue at a job center in Madrid The eurozone unemployment rate has hit a record high in March, rising to 10.9 percent for the first time for 15 years, official figures show. The European Statistics Office, Eurostat, announced on Wednesday that almost 17.4 million men and women, over three million of whom were under 25, looked for work in the zone in March which is about 170-thousand more... 

The Prime Minister of the Netherlands, Mark Rutte, has submitted his letter of resignation to Queen Beatrix after entering into a governmental coalition with the extreme right-wing Freedom Party, led by Geert Wilders, which had refused to support the budget reduction. His resignation was immediately accepted. The Netherlands, is one of many European countries which still supports the “AAA”... 

Angela Merkel (left) and Francois Hollande (right) German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French Socialist Party presidential candidate Francois Hollande have had a war of words over how to handle the European debt crisis. It is “not for Germany to decide for the rest of Europe”, Hollande, who is the favorite in France’s May 6 run-off election, said on Friday, The Daily Telegraph reported. He... 

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte has handed his government’s resignation to Queen Beatrix after talks on reducing the country’s budget to meet European guidelines failed. The government information service announced on Monday that the Queen accepted Rutte’s resignation and asked him to tend to urgent matters of the state until elections possibly as early as... 

Italian metalworkers march during a protest in Rome on March 9, 2012. Italy’s main labor unions have staged rallies in the capital Rome to protest Prime Minster Mario Monti’s pension reforms that is expected to trap many workers in a legal limbo without retirement pay. The plan will see the retirement age raised and that younger workers will collect smaller pensions than their parents. Monti’s... 

The Portuguese Government is convinced that the ongoing austerity measures and economic restructuring will enable the country to return to the credit market in 2013, but recent projections refute this assertion. Foreign politicians and economists predict that Portugal, like Greece, will exit the Eurozone. What do the Portuguese think about this? According to Ernst & Young, if the interest rate... 

European stock markets have dropped sharply, wiping out gains from the day before, amid fears that the eurozone debt crisis is resurfacing. European stock markets ended lower on Tuesday, with the Spanish stock market the worst hit, as the IBEX 35 index shed 2.7 percent, AFP reported. In Milan, FTSE MIB index also traded over two percent lower and Frankfurt’s DAX and Paris’ CAC 40 slumped 1.05... 

Riot police took to the streets of Spain as protesters burned bins, vandalized shops and attacked officers during a one day nationwide general strike. Spaniards angry with having the eurozone’s highest unemployment rate refused to go to work in protest at further crushing austerity measures being brought in by the new center-right Popular Party government.  Read More »