Foreign news: Is Amazon employing unemployed in Germany without compensation?

We have a variety of links here today with most focused on the European sovereign debt crisis. Protest and terrorism are two other topics of great interest.

• Gesetzeslücke: Amazon beschäftigt massenhaft Arbeitslose ohne Vergütung – SPIEGEL ONLINE – Nachrichten – Wirtschaft

  Spiegel (Germany) exposes Amazon, the online retailer, exploiting a loophole in German labour laws which allows them to employ thousands of jobless under “efforts to enhance employability” i.e. without adequate monetary compensation. The German labour department says allowing this loophole is an error “that must be corrected”.

• Staatsanleihen: Der Käuferstreik der Banken – Wirtschaft – FAZ

  FAZ (Germany) has a good article about the new-found investor aversion to formerly “risk free” sovereign debt.

• Europas Staatsanleihen: Ursache und Wirkung einer Finanzkatastrophe

  Blick Log (Germany) talks about exactly the same topic and examines whether Europe’s government bonds are cause of effect in the sovereign debt crisis. This is my favourite German-language finance blog.

• Streit über Euro-Bonds: Rösler wirft Barroso Verantwortungslosigkeit vor – SPIEGEL ONLINE – Nachrichten – Wirtschaft

  Spiegel (Germany) shows the tone of FDP head Phillip Rösler as shrill. The governing coalition economics minister calls Barroso’s Eurobond foray "irresponsible".

• Affaire DSK: Sofitel répond aux accusations – L’EXPRESS

  L’Express (France) has a story in which the Hotel chain Sofitel responds to the latest news from American investigative journalist Edward Jay Epstein in the DSK affaire. They call the conspiracy theory a “fantasy.”

• Colombie : les FARC exécutent quatre otages – LeMonde.fr

  Le Monde (France) reports that the Colombian terrorist group FARC has executed four hostages.

• Statoil klar for gigantkjøp i neste uke – DN.no

  Dagens Nyheter (Norway) reports that the acquisition by state-owned oil giant Staoil of Brigham USA is to be approved by Brigham shareholders on Thursday or Friday.

• Verden får indblik i Breiviks psyke

  Jyllands-Posten (Denmark) says that the report which court psychiatrists have written about the 32-year-old Norwegian mass murderer Donald Behring Breivik is bound to secrecy but some of it will be published soon for the world to see.

• Danmark gik imod USA i våbenstrid

  Jyllands-Posten (Denmark) reports that Denmark and 49 other countries is against the USA’s attempt to sanction the use of cluster bombs. Separately, I have seen that the UK is also against.

• Arabische Liga stemt vandaag over sancties Syrië – doden in Homs :: nrc.nl

  NRC Handelsblad (Netherlands) reports that the Arab League will vote today in Cairo whether to apply sanctions to Syria and the regime of president Bashar al-Assad.

• Twee op de drie Belgen zijn voor kernuitstap – De Standaard

  De Standaard (Belgium) says that 2 of 3 Belgians are against nuclear power and want old reactors to be shut by 2015.

• Egypte bereidt zich voor op massale demonstraties tegen militaire leiding :: nrc.nl

  NRC Handelsblad (Netherlands) reports that Egypt is preparing for a massive protest on the evening before elections.

• IWF bereitet 600-Milliarden-Hilfsplan für Italien vor – Italien in der Krise – derStandard.at › Wirtschaft

  Der Standard (Austria) – This is the story I reported on earlier today in which La Stampa has learned from IMF sources that the IMF is allegedly preparing a 600 billion euro package for Italy with funding backing of the ECB. Note that this version now fixes the mistake of reporting 600 billion euros as 600 million in the original version.

• Stimmungswechsel: Deutsche stützen Merkels Kurs in Euro-Krise – Nachrichten Politik – Deutschland – WELT ONLINE

  Die Welt (Germany) notes that Germans are behind Angela Merkel’s handling of the European sovereign debt crisis like never before. Her ratings had dipped but have made a remarkable surge since early October, ostensibly due to the harder line she has taken since that time.

• Schuldenkrise: Industrie stützt Merkels Nein zu Euro-Bonds – Nachrichten Wirtschaft – WELT ONLINE

  Die Welt (Germany) also reports that Angela Merkel has the backing of Industry given her hard line against Eurobonds. The article notes however, that despite the official line, Eurobonds are still on the table for the governing coalition.

• Schuldenkrise: Euro-Bonds? Bleiben Sie stur, Frau Bundeskanzlerin! – Nachrichten Debatte – Kommentare – WELT ONLINE

  Die Welt (Germany) again with an editorial exhorting Chancellor Merkel to hold firm in her opposition to Eurobonds. “Eurobonds are the devil’s stuff. Money printing would be even worse. Europe must be radically reformed or the euro zone should be wound down.”

• Geheime Verhandlungen: Merkel und Sarkozy wollen neuen EU-Vertrag – Politik Inland – Bild.de

  Bild Zeitung (Germany) reports on the Schengen style agreement that France and Germany plan to present at the EU head of states meeting scheduled for December 8th and 9th. The goal is to stabilise markets. They want to conclude bilateral aid agreements that is fast because it does not need a treaty change, referenda or unanimity to enact. Afterward, the ECB and Eurobonds would be considered.

• Schuldenkrise: Kulissen-Kampf um den Euro und die letzte rote Linie – Nachrichten Wirtschaft – WELT ONLINE

  Die Welt (Germany) reports what I translated yesterday about Eurobonds being still on the table despite official denials from Germany’s governing coalition..

• Chefvolkswirt Jürgen Stark im Gespräch: „Der politische Druck auf die EZB ist enorm" – Wirtschaftspolitik – FAZ

  FAZ (Germany) has another article I translated which is an interview with outgoing ECB chief economist Juergen Stark in which Stark reveals why he has opposed greater ECB action in the euro crisis.