GERMANY

Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou will Friday seek support from German Chancellor Angela Merkel, leader of the euro zone's biggest economy, in his struggle to tackle his country's debt crisis.

Germany and the chairman of the group of countries using the euro ruled out immediate financial aid for Greece before talks on Friday with Prime Minister George Papandreou.

Skype and Nokia have released a new Skype client for the Symbian mobile OS.

The debate about fixing the financial crisis seems to be missing a key factor -- a broad ethical discussion of what is the right and wrong thing to do in a modern economy.

Four Islamist militants who admitted planning a monstrous bloodbath with foiled car bomb attacks on U.S. targets in Germany were convicted on Thursday of conspiracy to murder.

Debt-burdened Greece drew strong demand for a crucial bond issue on Thursday but paid a steep risk premium that underscored its plea to Germany and other EU partners for support to help lower its borrowing costs.

Debt-burdened Greece launched a critical bond issue on Thursday and urged Germany and other EU partners to send a clear signal of confidence in Athens to financial markets that would allow it to borrow more cheaply.

World stocks slipped on Thursday while the euro held above a recent 9-month low against the dollar as the European Central Bank prepared to announce next steps in stimulus withdrawal after its policy meeting.

Asian shares failed to hold on to their early gains, slipping into negative territory as worries about Greece and the outlook for the global economy made investors cautious.

Asian shares eked out gains and the euro extended its rise on Thursday after Greece announced fresh austerity measures to reduce its deficit and on data pointing to a rebound in the U.S. jobs market.

The United States, France and other Western powers are preparing a plan for a fourth round of U.N. sanctions against Iran over its nuclear program and hope to persuade Russia and China to back it.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton failed to win Brazil's support on Wednesday for more sanctions against Iran and said Tehran would not talk seriously about its nuclear program until the United Nations took new action.

Greece targeted civil servants, the rich and the church on Wednesday in a sweeping new 4.8 billion euro ($6.5 billion) austerity program designed to secure European help to tackle its crippling debt burden.

Low U.S. interest rates were not the sole cause of the housing bubble, a top Federal Reserve official said on Wednesday, adding that ultra-low interest rates are appropriate now.

Greece targeted civil servants, the rich and the church in a sweeping new austerity program it hopes Europe will reward by helping tackle a crippling debt burden.

The euro rose against the U.S. dollar on Wednesday after the Greek government endorsed a 4.8 billion euro austerity package, boosting hopes the heavily indebted country would get help from the European Union. The euro gained roughly half a U.S. cent after a government source told Reuters the Greek cabinet decided on the plan, which included a rise in value added tax to 21 percent and a cut in public sector salary bonuses by 30 percent.

Greece's cabinet approved a sweeping new austerity program on Wednesday, the third in as many months, to rein in a bulging budget deficit and secure European financial support, a government source said.

The president of the U.N. Security Council said on Tuesday it was ready to tackle proposals for new sanctions against Iran over its nuclear program, while U.S. diplomats worked to persuade China that action is needed.

EU internal market commissioner Michel Barnier was quoted on Wednesday as saying Brussels would conduct an internal investigation into the trading of credit default swaps related to Greece and other countries.

The U.N. Security Council might take up this month the issue of Iran's nuclear program and Western proposals for a fourth round of sanctions against Tehran, Gabon's U.N. envoy said on Tuesday.

Dubai's police chief plans to seek the arrest of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the head of Israel's spy agency over the killing of a Hamas leader in the emirate, Al Jazeera television reported.