Sunday, 29 January 2012 11:38 'The German government has called for Greece to hand control over its finances to the European Union in what would be an unprecedented expansion of Brussels' power. Under the plan, in order for the embattled country to receive a second bail-out - now estimated at up to €145bn (£122bn) - a eurozone 'budget commissioner' would be given the power to decide Athens' tax and spending, The proposed power grab, revealed today by the Financial Times, would be met by strong opposition in Athens, where anti-German protests have already been seen on the streets and in the media.' Sunday, 29 January 2012 09:42 '“Italy already risks the closure of five refineries and at a European level we're talking about 70 possible shutdowns,” Piero De Simone, general manager of Unione Petrolifera, told Bloomberg. Sunday, 29 January 2012 08:37 'Tens of thousands of demonstrators have taken to the streets in Spain's northeastern city of Barcelona to protest at spending cuts hitting major services in the Catalonia region. The protesters chanted anti-government slogans and held banners reading “Let's stop the spending cuts. No to the financial dictator,” as they marched from Catalonia Square to La Ciutadella Park on Saturday. The demonstration comes as Catalonia's regional parliament is debating cuts worth EUR 625 million for its 2012 budget, in an attempt to contain its deficit by 1.3 percent of its gross domestic product.'
He expressed concern over the unilateral sanctions on the Islamic Republic, saying the embargo will help the Asian oil importers will thus be more powerful to undercut their European competitors.
"Asian countries not applying the embargo could buy the Iranian oil at a discount and sell cheap refined products back to us," Piero De Simone said.'
Sunday, 29 January 2012
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