If Greece's debt crisis is giving the European Union a headache, it is minor compared to the pain it will suffer if a large member state such as Spain sinks into similar trouble.
Last month's huge earthquake in Chile might cost the insurance industry up to $7 billion in damage claims, the world's top two reinsurers said, but it looks unlikely to raise reinsurance prices.
Concerns over Europe's fiscal problems hit the euro and sterling on Wednesday, while world stocks hovered near their recent six-week highs, though they were still up 66 percent from a low hit one year ago.
Asian stocks hovered near six-week highs on Wednesday as Chinese data showed exports and imports in February were better than expected, while the euro and the pound suffered on renewed concerns about Europe's fiscal problems.
British bank Barclays Plc is looking to buy a retail bank in the United States to extend its presence after buying Lehman Brothers North American operations in 2008, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday, citing people close to the matter.
The U.S. stock market is slightly down Tuesday morning as rating agencies published concerns about Portugal and the U.K.
The yen gained across the board on Tuesday as most world equity markets fell, illustrating a rise in risk aversion as investors moved into the low-yielding Japanese currency. Appetite for risk had been boosted by Friday's better-than- expected U.S. employment report, pushing the yen down to two-week lows versus the euro and the dollar.
Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou on Monday urged the Group of 20 nations to crack down on market speculators, warning that failing to do so could trigger another global financial crisis.
In a quiet day for U.S. earnings and economic releases, major U.S. indices are mixed after some positive developments from Europe and Dubai on debt issues. The tech sector leads on Cisco and upgrades.
Portugal became the latest euro zone country to announce austerity measures to rein in a ballooning budget deficit as bond markets eased pressure on debt-stricken Greece on Monday after a French pledge of EU help.
Portugal's long-term budget austerity plan encompasses spending cuts via reducing tax breaks and containing public sector wages, but entails no Greece-style wage cuts or tax hikes, local media said on Sunday.
Portugal's Socialist government approved guidelines of a long-term budget austerity plan on Saturday, but will release details sought by markets demanding commitment to deficit and debt cuts, only next week.
The debt crisis plaguing Greece has turned out to be another opportunity for global investment advisors to bat for gold, the hottest commodity traded in the world. And when it comes to gold, what the Swiss investing advisor and analyst Marc Faber says on the economic crisis that has hit Greece is making waves these days. Faber says Greek crisis is just the beginning and the entire Europe will be caught in debt problems. And the commodity that can save people is gold.
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.
U.S. regulators are closely monitoring banks' exposures to sovereign debt risk, Comptroller of the Currency John Dugan said on Monday.
White House economic adviser Larry Summers said on Monday winter blizzards were likely to distort U.S. February jobless figures, which are due to be released on Friday.
The European Union urged Greece on Monday to agree additional austerity measures within days to tackle a fiscal crisis that has shaken the euro zone and promised to help Athens overcome its debt problems.
Factories around the world enjoyed a bumper February with business surveys showing the manufacturing sector in major economies continued to lead an economic recovery, despite a slowdown in some growth rates.
Snowstorms have repeatedly battered parts of the United States this winter, making it more difficult to discern returning weakness in the economy from
Greece's prime minister announced plans on Friday to meet German Chancellor Angela Merkel next week as signs grow that diplomatic efforts are under way to resolve his country's debt crisis.
Greece's prime minister called on Friday for more solidarity from the European Union over the country's debt crisis and announced plans to visit Germany, whose backing would be vital for any EU financial aid.
U.S. regulators are probing how Wall Street firms like Goldman Sachs helped debt-stricken Greece arrange derivatives deals that critics say were used to disguise the size of its budget deficits.
