Global Economy, Europe Debt Crisis | featured news

Starved of financing options, Greece will offer an unusually large amount of treasury bills next week so it can meet looming redemptions and fund its cash needs .

Stocks are opening lower on Wall Street, deflated by signs that the global economic meltdown is being felt across Asia... China reported sharply lower growth in its exports. The so-called fiscal cliff, when U.S. government spending cuts and higher taxes kick in on Jan. 1, looms larger now that the distraction of earnings season is over.

Corporate storm clouds gathered over Spain again as two major European companies joined the ranks of those saying they were taking steps to reduce exposure to the recession-hit country.

Europe's biggest economies endured another torrid month in July as businesses battled slumping demand, according to surveys on Friday that gave scant hope the region will emerge any time soon from a malaise induced by a paralyzing debt crisis.

The European meltdown is weighing heavily on the U.S. economy, with states that rely heavily on exports most at risk from the deepening crisis overseas. An analysis by Wells Fargo estimates that Utah and West Virginia economies face the biggest risk from the problems in the eurozone, while many Western states including Wyoming and Colorado are unlikely to see much impact.

German leaders have a message for their anxious neighbors: Perhaps the euro crisis isn’t so dire after all. A growing chorus of German policymakers say they have years to resolve the euro zone’s problems, even as Italy and Spain press for urgent action to bring down their borrowing costs, which are approaching new heights.

Ten-year bond yields rose above 7 percent and shorter-term issues also sold at higher cost, raising fears that recent European accords were not enough to stem the debt crisis.

Irene Fernandez lost her job with Spain's postal service five months ago, a victim of government spending cuts. Since then, she's been getting by on spending money from her mother and the $530 a month she earns grooming dogs for neighbors.

The president of the European Commission sharply criticized Britain for blaming its economic problems on the euro zone, and warned against efforts to divide European nations.

Unemployment in the 17-country euro currency bloc hit another record in May as the crippling financial crisis pushed the continent toward the brink of recession, official figures showed Monday.