LONDON (AFP) – The euro briefly topped 1.30 dollars on Tuesday, nearing a 10-week high point as the US currency was plagued by renewed concerns over the US economic outlook. In early trading, the shared eurozone unit struck 1.3029, the highest point since May 10. It later pulled back to 1.2976 dollars, up from 1.2943 [...]

BERLIN – Germany’s autobahns are renowned for average speeds well in excess of 80 miles (130 kilometers) an hour. But the average dropped near zero Sunday as tens of thousands of people sat at a 37-mile table for a cultural celebration titled, appropriately enough, “Still Life.” Cars were strictly verboten. “Attention on the A40,” a [...]

CANBERRA (Reuters) – Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard called an election on Saturday for August 21, with the tightly-fought poll to be decided over policies on economic management, climate and border protection. Australia’s first female prime minister was appointed three weeks ago by the ruling Labor party as the government faced electoral defeat. Since then [...]

NEW YORK – Thierry Henry is retiring from the French national team. The 32-year-old forward announced his decision Thursday at the offices of The Associated Press before a news conference to discuss his signing with Major League Soccer’s New York Red Bulls. A member of France’s 1998 world championship and 2000 European champion teams, Henry [...]

PARIS – France’s labor minister says he wants to speak with investigators soon to clear his name in a snowballing scandal over campaign financing that has destabilized President Nicolas Sarkozy’s government. The Le Journal du Dimanche Sunday newspaper quoted Labor Minister Eric Woerth as saying he is “at the disposal of police and the justice [...]

BERLIN – How much stress can Europe’s banking system take? That question has put markets on edge amid the continent’s government debt crisis, and European Union leaders hope to make a big step toward restoring confidence with the publication later this month of “stress tests” on 91 banks representing the bulk — 65 percent — [...]

ATHENS, Greece – Greece said Friday it will auction euro1.25 billion ($1.58 billion) in 6-month treasury bills next week, in its first effort to borrow from international markets since receiving a vital international bailout in May. The public debt management agency said the bills will be auctioned on July 13, with the sale settled on [...]

PARIS – A Paris court has convicted aging former Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega of laundering drug money in France and ordered him to spend seven years behind bars — a decision that left friends and foes worried he might die in a prison far from home. Wednesday’s sentence in France, where Noriega was extradited 10 [...]

LONDON (Reuters) – Oil prices rose on Wednesday, pulling up after a losing streak in the past six trading sessions, supported by an expected fall in crude oil inventories in the United States, the world’s top energy consumer. By 1333 GMT, U.S. crude rose 97 cents to $72.94 a barrel, having fallen to $71.44 earlier. [...]

STRASBOURG (AFP) – An EU project to create pan-European watchdogs to police the financial sector hit a snag Tuesday as negotiations between EU lawmakers and states stalled over how much power to give them. The European Parliament postponed a vote on the plan until September to give negotiators more time to reach a deal on [...]