The last months of the year are traditionally the time when national parliaments vote on the budgets for next year. Like in the years before, in many countries deep cuts in social services and further privatizations are planned. Despite good-sounding news from and for the financial markets, austerity for ordinary people continues. This might not be by accident. ...

Hospital workers, teachers and rubbish collectors launched a 24-hour strike across Portugal on Friday to decry a new round of public sector wage and pension cuts in the bailed-out nation. ...

Thousands of Portugese took the streets of Portugal's two most populated cities to demonstrate against planned cuts of pensions and salaries. Saturday's demonstrations are a response to the government's decision to extend austerity measures in the 2014 budget. ...

Carlos Humberto de Carvalho, the mayor of Barreiro, is a straightforward and frank 62-year-old who has just won the Portuguese city’s municipal elections for the third time in a row — and with an absolute majority. Dressed without a tie, he has been a communist since he came of age in 1968, since the tough, tricky and far-off days of the underground era. He belongs to the hardcore — to the Central Committee ...

Portugal's political crisis has deepened with the resignation of foreign minister Paulo Portas, in a move which could trigger the collapse of the ruling coalition government. Mr Portas heads junior coalition party CDS-PP, which guarantees the government's parliamentary majority. ...

               Associated Press  German flags wave in front of the Reichstag building in Berlin. FRANKFURT—Immigration to Germany hit a 17-year high last year as Southern Europeans flocked north to escape economic recession and search for jobs, fueling the debate over the consequences of immigration for the German economy. In all, 1.08 million people moved to Germany last year, or 13% more than in 2011, Ger ...

Portugal's constitutional court has rejected four out of nine contested austerity measures in this year's budget in a ruling that deals a blow to government finances but is unlikely to derail reforms two years after the country's bailout. The measures rejected by the court should deprive the country of at least 900 million euros ($1.17 billion) in net revenues and savings, according to preliminary estimates ...

Many thousands of demonstrators have held marches in more than 20 cities in Portugal to protest against government-imposed austerity measures aimed at lifting the ailing country out of recession. Tens of thousands of people filled a Lisbon boulevard during Saturday's protests and headed to the finance ministry carrying placards saying "Screw the troika, we want our lives back". The troika is a reference to ...

Growers and shrinkers   The fastest growing and shrinking economies in 2013 MACAU will be the fastest growing economy this year, according to the latest estimates from our sister company, the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU). Growth is expected to return to a faster pace as new casino projects are resumed and Chinese visitors (with rising wages) continue to raise gambling revenues. Mongolia, in second ...

Spain: Fernando Lezcano: 'The sacrifice is not being shared'   The European Trade Union Confederation has called a day of action and solidarity throughout Europe on 14 November to fight against the austerity policies being deployed throughout Europe. This day of action will mean a general strike in this country, which, for the first time in recent history, will also be simultaneously held in other Euro ...