Germans pay dearly as Swiss stay at home

Sales are down at Kuecuek Coekelekci's kebab stand in Jestetten, Germany. The reason: Many of his customers from neighboring Switzerland are nowhere to be found.

Stocks on the up across Asia

Asian stocks extended gains yesterday, with Australian, Singapore and South Korean markets setting new records, while the yen lost ground to the dollar and euro after the Bank of Japan kept interest rates on hold.

New Chrysler deal echoes GM pact

Chrysler LLC and the United Auto Workers ended a six-hour strike after agreeing on a contract that echoes last month's historic accord on retiree health care between the union and General Motors Corp.

Biz people

Fisher to take helm at ABN

IN BRIEF (Page 16)

'Housing crisis unlikely to hit Saint-Gobain'

A collapse in the US housing market is so far having a limited impact on Saint-Gobain's activity, the head of the world's biggest building materials group said, confirming the group's financial targets.

King reluctant to cut interest rates

Bank of England Governor Mervyn King suggested he's reluctant to cut interest rates to shield lenders from increased credit costs and predicted more "turmoil" in financial markets.

Survey: US economy to avoid slump

The US economy will skirt recession even as the housing slump takes a bigger bite from growth, according to a survey of economists.

Credit crunch means it's a new M&A ballgame

There's a revival under way in billion-dollar takeover offers, and the latest batch of deals shows how this year's credit crunch changed the landscape for mergers and acquisitions.

IN BRIEF (Page 16)

Business International

Google tops $600, but $700 may be harder to hit

Google Inc shares rose from $500 to $600 in 11 months. The next $100 gain may take longer.