Schröder scores big victory in reform drive Chancellor Gerhard Schröder has overcome a big hurdle in his attempt to revive Germany's sluggish economy and save its welfare state from collapse.
18:41 | Read
Wall Street traded lower, as technology stocks slipped after disappointing earnings from bellwethers Sun Microsystems and eBay. AMD bucked the trend, with upbeat sales.
17:56 | Read
COMMODITIES Record highs as investors spread exposure Commodity prices from aluminium and cattle to cotton and zinc hit record highs this week as investors seeking to diversify from equities and bonds found appeal in the sector.
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Rise of far right
Economic problems spark political tensions for Swiss The Swiss economy is in recession and unemployment is nearing record levels, but such concerns have hardly featured in campaigning for the general elections on Sunday. Instead, immediate debate has focused on themes such as law and order, foreigners and the enduring issue of Swiss exceptionalism – the pronounced feeling of being different to other European countries. Oct 17 2003 | Read
The two achievements on which the president hopes to get re-elected – the low-tax economy and the Iraq war – are at odds. He cannot protect one without threatening the other.
Oct 17 2003 | Read
Britons are begging, dropping litter, starting fights, being rowdy, touting for sex, vandalising property or committing some other "low-level" offence once every two seconds.
Oct 17 2003 | Read
A leader in the ascendancy Hu Jintau is on a rising trajectory but China's president faces a delicate task balancing the Communist party's sensitivities about reform with the need to maintain economic momentum. 20:10 | Read
Book review: US in Iran, history's lessons Guy Dinmore, former FT correspondent in Tehran, reviews two new books that examine the lessons for US foreign policy in the Middle East from the Iranian coup half a century ago. 14:45 | Read