BRUSSELS — Belgium was paralyzed by a national strike Monday as unions, angry over austerity measures, timed the protest to coincide with a one-day meeting of European Union leaders here in the capital. The rail network was shut down and flights were severely disrupted, with the airport at Charleroi, a hub for the low-cost carrier Ryanair, closed by the first general strike in Belgium since 1993. Tram, bus ...

By James G. Neuger and Jurjen van de Pol for Bloomberg   European leaders sparred with Greece over a second rescue program, clouding progress toward a permanent aid fund and tougher budget rules designed to stabilize the euro. Greece faced criticism that its economic makeover is faltering, and it fended off German and Dutch calls for a European overseer to take command of its budget after its deficits ...

By Allan Little BBC News Having to pay for its reunification after the fall of the Berlin wall, Germany broke the budget deficit rules in 2003 - did this set a bad example for the eurozone?   Who is to blame for starting the current crisis in the eurozone? Greece? Italy? The real answer may lie further north. It was not the behaviour of the eurozone's southern members that first plunged the single curr ...

(Reuters) - More than 400 anti-Wall Street protesters were arrested in Oakland during a night of skirmishes in which police fired tear gas and bean bag projectiles, the city said on Sunday, marking one of the biggest mass arrests since nationwide economic protests began last year. Earlier on Sunday, authorities had said that the arrest figure was between 200 and 300. But the Oakland emergency operations cen ...

By economistmeg.com At the top of my list of to do’s for the past few weeks has been to update the post on Greek PSI that I wrote just before Christmas to include some more recent developments, such as the prospect of ECB participation. Last night, Peter Spiegel from the Financial Times (@SpiegelPeter) published the German government’s proposal for Greece’s “improvement of compliance” with the terms of the ...

  On October, even though the annually steel production almost doubled last year, the management of Greek Steelworks SA decided to cut down salaries and dismiss many workers using the crisis as an excuse. «On the 17th of October, our boss was clear: 5 hours a day and 40% salary reduction». Two days later, after a general assembly of 280 attendees the workers' response was «If you proceed, we will go on ...

Actions such as those by the Occupy movements and UK Uncut provide transparency in an inherently unjust system. Oxford, UK - No one wants to sound naïve and over-excited. We much prefer to come across as worldly-wise and realistic. So it's always tempting to dismiss direct action. After all, we tell ourselves, politicians and their friends always end up doing what they want, no matter how loudly we protest. ...

The dreadful debt saga will only come to a close when Greece takes charge of its predicament Negotiations to reduce Greek debt have been suspended after no agreement could be reached last week. At some point in the near future Greece seems certain to default on its obligations. But the drama surrounding the talks in Athens, Berlin and Paris shows that there will be nothing co-operative about Greek default. ...

Greece’s debt-holders Volunteers wanted A CATCHY new phrase has been added to the Orwellian lexicon of Euro-speak, where terms such as “stability and growth” actually mean the opposite. This is “private-sector involvement” (PSI), which is code for imposing losses on Greece’s private creditors. The International Monetary Fund’s most recent review of the Greek economy, in December, gives an indication of the ...

Development Minister Michalis Chrysochoidis, who has declared he intends to challenge for the PASOK leadership, said on Tuesday that when he was part of the Cabinet in 2010 he did not read the terms of Greece's loan agreement with the European Union and the International Monetary Fund. Speaking to Skai TV, Chrysochoidis said that he was too busy at the time with his duties as Citizens' Protection Minister t ...