Pound Into Euros

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Iran talks with world powers hit snag over sanctions
24 May 2012 at 3:35am
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iran accused world powers on Thursday of creating "a difficult atmosphere" that hindered talks on its atomic energy programme, signaling a snag in diplomacy to defuse fears of a covert Iranian bid to develop nuclear bombs. The nub of the dispute was not immediately clear as the high-stakes talks went into a second day in the Iraqi capital Baghdad. But Iran had served notice that it wanted immediate relief from economic sanctions as part of any deal to scale back uranium enrichment, whereas Western powers insisted Tehran must first rein in its activity. ...

UK recession deepens as euro zone woes mount
24 May 2012 at 3:26am

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain fell deeper into recession than initially thought in the first quarter of 2012 due to a slump in construction output, raising the likelihood that the Bank will opt to inject more stimulus to protect the economy from the euro zone debt crisis. Britain is in its second recession since the 2007-2008 financial crisis, and the prospects for a recovery are cloudy as leaders in the euro zone, Britain's biggest trading partner, are still far from resolving their debt woes. ...

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - BMW , the world's biggest premium carmaker, plans to appeal a fine from the Swiss Competition Commission amounting to 156 million Swiss franc ($163 million) within the legal deadline of one month. "We categorically reject the accusations, the argumentation and the amount of the fine," said a spokeswoman for the company, adding that BMW adhered to all laws governing both Switzerland and the European Economic Area. ...

World stock markets wavered Thursday as the lack of a breakthrough in Europe's attempts to shake off its debt crisis kept sentiment gloomy.

BEIJING (Reuters) - China's factories faltered in May as export orders fell to two month lows, a private sector survey showed on Thursday, suggesting surprise weakness in April's hard economic data persists even as policymakers seek to shore up growth. The HSBC Flash Purchasing Managers Index, the earliest indicator of China's industrial sector, retreated to 48.7 in May from a final reading of 49.3 in April. It marked the seventh straight month that the index has been below 50, indicating contracting economic activity. ...

LONDON (Reuters) - The euro hit a fresh 22-month low and European shares gave up early gains on Thursday after data showed Europe's economic slump has worsened, as talk of a Greek exit and a lack of progress in tackling the debt crisis hits business confidence. Germany's manufacturing sector shrank at the fastest rate in three years in May, the Markit manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) showed, as both exports and new orders coming into factories declined. ...

HONG KONG (Reuters) - With home turf advantage in the world's biggest computer market and a foothold in major emerging economies, China's Lenovo Group is looking to turn market share into profit, heaping more pressure on U.S. rivals Hewlett-Packard Co and Dell Inc. Concern that global tech spending, particularly in the developed world, is weakening faster than expected has battered Dell shares and prompted HP to axe some 27,000 jobs. To counter weakness in consumer spending in major cities in the world's second-largest economy, Lenovo is Casting its net wider. ...

Strong exports and consumer demand helped the German economy, Europe's biggest, steer clear of recession in the first three months of this year, official data showed on Thursday.