GERMANY

The German government has delayed a vote which was expected to rule out federal aid for General Motors' European unit Opel, giving Opel's supporters a few more days to lobby Berlin to change its mind.

Electric cars offer a chance to develop lucrative new technologies, and suppliers would benefit from grabbing more of this work -- but they will have to fight carmakers keen to hold on to control of future profits.

Top executives of the world's biggest airlines will gather in Berlin this weekend, seeking elusive answers to the future of the industry as they move past the financial crisis and the damage from Iceland's ash cloud. The International Air Transport Association holds its annual meeting in the German capital from June 6-8, followed by the ILA Berlin Air Show from June 8-13.

The global recovery had enough momentum before Europe's debt crisis struck to be able to weather it without being derailed, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said on Thursday.

Germany's consumer protection minister said on Thursday she would quit Facebook over what she called privacy law violations that she believed would lead to the company being fined by German data protection authorities.

Disagreements over how quickly to reduce billowing budget deficits and restore balance to the global economy risk straining high-level Group of 20 talks that started on Thursday.

Children who eat three or more burgers a week may be at a higher risk of asthma and wheezing, but a healthy diet rich in fruit and fish seems to stave off the risk, according to a large international study.

French-inspired plans to create an economic government for the euro zone took a step forward on Wednesday when European Council President Herman Van Rompuy threw his weight behind the idea.

Group of 20 nations must agree to put public finances back on a sustainable path but in a way that doesn't choke off global recovery, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said on Wednesday.

The easy access to voice mail that AT&T and T-Mobile offer their mobile phone subscribers when abroad infringes patents held by a Swiss company, a lawsuit filed in federal court in Delaware says.

French carmaker Renault and its Japanese Partner Nissan should together become the world's third-biggest car manufacturer this year, Renault Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn told the Financial Times.

Germany's new car market shrank for a sixth consecutive month as demand slumps following the end of government incentives.

Central bank reserve holdings have exploded globally in the last decade and nowhere more so than in Asia, where the biggest piles of cash are. Since 2000, global foreign exchange reserves have grown by a staggering $6.15 trillion and stood at $8.09 trillion at the end of 2009, or 14 percent of the world's gross domestic product, International Monetary Fund data showed.

Asian stocks followed Wall Street down on Wednesday as jitters over the euro zone's debt crisis prompted investors to keep cutting riskier positions, while the euro steadied after hitting a four-year low.

Canada has launched a probe into Google Inc as legal problems escalate surrounding the search engine's disclosure that it collected private data while taking photographs for its Street View product.

Berlin promised to decide by the start of next week on whether to grant state aid to General Motors unit Opel, ending a year and a half of uncertainty over the European carmaker's future.

Good morning dear traders, .... there is not much to report of yesterday´s trading day as there have been only little trading chances due to very low volatility in the markets.

The European Central Bank warned on Monday that euro zone banks face up to 195 billion euros in a second wave of potential loan losses over the next 18 months due to the financial crisis, and disclosed it had increased purchases of euro zone government bonds.

Apple Inc said it sold 2 million iPads since launching the touch-screen tablet in the United States nearly two months ago and taking it to nine international markets this past weekend.

European Central Bank policymaker Axel Weber on Monday urged a tight cap on the bank's government bond buying program, saying extraordinary steps taken to ease the debt crisis posed a risk to its main goal of price stability.

Trichet says euro credible, bond buys necessary - Draghi: bond buying will stop once markets functioning - Trichet says Q2 growth to be stronger than expected - Makuch: euro exchange rate good for exports