Eurozone avoids chaos, but debt crisis persists
The eurozone avoided a nightmare scenario after Germany's top court authorised bailouts, but caveats imposed by the judges risk limiting the bloc's options to resolve the debt crisis, analysts say.
Day: September 7, 2011
Germany
Switzerland
Gold’s status boosted as Swiss weaken franc
Gold's status as a safe haven in times of economic turmoil is set to strengthen, pushing the precious metal to fresh record highs, after Switzerland weakened its currency, analysts said on Wednesday.
Norway
Nimble Danes outclass Norwegians
Norwegians writhed in sports agony on Wednesday, the day after their much speculated-on national team was hopelessly outplayed 2-0 by a more nimble Denmark.
Sweden
Swedes charged with terror crimes in Ethiopia
The two Swedish journalists held in an Ethiopian prison are to be charged with terrorist crimes, according to information from the Ethiopian government and the Swedish foreign ministry.
Norway
Investors flee Swiss franc for Norway’s krone
Norwegians were greeted on Wednesday by the strongest krone in eight years after frantic action by Switzerland suggested the franc might no longer be the investor haven of choice.
Sweden
Swedish goalie dead in Russia plane crash
Swedish national ice hockey team goalie Stefan Liv was among those killed in the crash of a Russian passenger plane that went down on Wednesday carrying members of the Lokomotiv ice hockey team.
Germany
Berlin has Europe’s cleanest air
Germany’s capital Berlin has topped a list of major European cities for best clean air practices meant to decrease soot and other particulate pollution.
France
On-loan Joe Cole liking life in Lille
Lille defender Franck Beria said on Tuesday that the French champions' latest signing, England international Joe Cole, is settling in "very quickly" at his new club.
France
French officer killed in Afghanistan
A French officer was shot dead on Wednesday by an insurgent fighter as he accompanied an Afghan army unit on an operation in eastern Afghanistan, French officials announced.
Sweden
Wrong to sack cop for lewd blog posts: court
A Swedish police officer who blogged about how he and a colleague secretly dabbed the tips of their sex organs against parts of a car driven by female cops should not have been fired, a Swedish court ruled on Wednesday.
France
France to ban boob job jabs
Injections to enhance the size of women's breasts have been banned by France's medical safety agency amid fears they can hamper screening for breast cancer.
Switzerland
President says no bank client names given to US
Switzerland has not handed the names of any clients of Swiss banks to US tax authorities, Swiss President Micheline Calmy-Rey said on Wednesday.
Switzerland
Scorned lovers in pink feather penis revenge
Two young women were convicted of sexual assault in the Zürich district court on Tuesday after seeking revenge on their philandering ex-lover last summer by gluing his testicles to his thigh and decorating his genital area with pink feathers.
Sweden
Public services sell-off ‘no impact’ on efficiency
Privatisation and competition within public services have not become the miracle cure that Sweden was hoping for twenty years ago, according to a new study by Sweden’s leading public services researchers.
Sweden
Top ten Swedish tech innovations
Classic inventions such as the adjustable wrench, dynamite or the pacemaker, are generally quickly identified as products of legendary Swedish masterminds. Newer inventions, however, often meshed into conglomerate organizations, might not be as easily traced.
Germany
Another car arsonist arrested in Berlin
Berlin police on Wednesday arrested another suspect in their investigation into the spate of car arson attacks in the German capital. Over 540 road vehicles have been burnt out in the city since the start of the year – including six more overnight.
Sweden
Drunken elk rescued from Swede’s apple tree
A drunken elk desperate for just one more mouthful of fermenting apples lost its balance in the attempt, leaving it stuck in an apple tree in western Sweden.
Sweden
‘Nothing can bring her back’: mother
The mother of a 22-year-old Swedish woman who died after being denied an ambulance because she was “still talking” has reported the incident to Swedish health authorities.
France
Judges study Chirac charges in his absence
French judges began on Tuesday to wade into the evidence that former president Jacques Chirac presided over a network of ghost workers while mayor of Paris, but the suspect himself stayed away.
Germany
Monastery pays €700,000 to victims of abuse
The Benedictine monastery Ettal in the German state of Bavaria announced Tuesday that it is paying 70 former pupils between €5,000 and €20,000 each in compensation, after decades of child abuse were uncovered there last year.
Switzerland
President Calmy-Rey to retire from government
Switzerland's President and Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey on Wednesday announced that she would not be running for re-election in December.
France
Pitch frustrates France in Romania
France extended their unbeaten run to 13 games but struggled to a 0-0 draw against Romania in a match spoiled by the appalling state of the pitch at the National Arena.
France
Lagardere: sexy video was ‘ridiculous’
One of France's most important businessmen has admitted his regret about a video in which he cozied up to his 20-year-old girlfriend.
France
Staff cuts let suspected drug dealer walk free
A man held in prison on accusations of drug dealing was set free on Tuesday afternoon when a staff shortage meant he wasn't able to be taken from his cell to a court room.
Germany
Euro bailouts legal but MPs need more say
Germany's top court ruled on Wednesday that aid for Greece and rescue packages for other eurozone countries was legal but said parliament must have greater say in any future bailout.
Switzerland
Switzerland tops global competition stakes
Switzerland still leads the world in competitiveness because of innovation and labour market efficiency, the World Economic Forum (WEF) said on Wednesday.
Sweden
Riksbank leaves repo rate unchanged
Sweden's Riksbank announced on Wednesday that they have decided to hold the country's main interest rate unchanged at 2 percent and to postpone future increases.
Germany
Discovering the Eifel on two wheels
North Rhine-Westphalia might be Germany’s most populous state, but a vast expanse of untouched nature lies not far from the dense urban area surrounding Cologne. Alexander Bakst goes cycling in the Eifel.
Switzerland
Shaqiri treble keeps Swiss Euro hopes alive
Three goals from teenager Xherdan Shaqiri saw Switzerland come from behind to defeat Bulgaria 3-1 in Basel on Tuesday.
France
Airline drama echoes doomed Rio-Paris flight
An inquiry has been opened into an incident on an Air France aircraft that experienced a series of problems similar to those of the AF 447 flight that crashed off the coast of Brazil in June 2009, according to Le Figaro.
Sweden
Crisis-hit Saab files for bankruptcy protection
Swedish automaker Saab Automobile has applied for bankruptcy protection as it continues to battle mounting debts, according to a press release from owners Swedish Automobile.
Germany
Obama gets top feedback from Germans
A new pan-European survey has found that Germans see US President Barack Obama and American foreign policy more positively than most EU citizens.
Sweden
Man stabbed in Stockholm gang brawl
A man was left nursing stab wounds to the neck after a mass brawl involving some 20 men belonging to rival biker gangs in central Stockholm on Tuesday.
Germany
Foreign Ministry confirms deaths of aid workers
Two German development workers who have been missing for three weeks in Afghanistan were confirmed dead by the Foreign Ministry late on Tuesday.
Sweden
Swedes leave it late to beat San Marino
Sweden's men claimed a crucial victory over footballing minnows San Marino on Tuesday night, finally breaking the deadlock in the second half to prompt a flurry of goals and win the Euro 2012 qualifier 5-0.
Sweden
Sweden charges Serb over Kosovo war crimes
A Serbian man was charged by a Swedish prosecutor on Tuesday in connection with his role in a massacre in the village of Cuska in Kosovo in 1999, in which 40 people were killed.
Germany
Markets await top court verdict on euro bailouts
Germany's top court will Wednesday decide on the legality of Europe's rescue fund, in a landmark ruling with major implications for future aid as the eurozone debt crisis continues to rage.
Germany
Germany labour to draw in Poland
Germany coach Joachim Löw shouldered the blame as his new-look midfield struggled in the 2-2 draw with Poland as only a late equalizer denied the ten-man hosts a historic win over their neighbours.