News in English

8. April 2017, 21:58

France is back in recession

New figures for France, the second largest economy in the Eurozone, show that it's entered its second recession in four years. The economy shrank by 0.2% in the first quarter of this year after shrinking by the same amount at the end of 2012. Economist Christian Schulz says the development was expected: "investment was down and exports were down and that is worrying. France has been losing competitiveness over the years, businesses don't have the confidence to invest and these trends are likely to continue." Figures for Germany, the Eurozone's strongest economy, show that it grew by just 0.1% in the first quarter

Nigeria declares state of emergency

Nigeria's President Goodluck Jonathan has declared a state of emergency in three states after a series of deadly attacks by Islamist militant groups. He's also ordered more troops to be sent to the north-east. Militants from the group Boko Haram have been blamed for most of the violence which has left 2,000 people dead over the last three years

Donor’s conference for Mali

An international donor’s conference is taking place in Brussels to raise funds to help rebuild Mali in the wake of the recent conflict. The EU is set to promise over 500 million Euros. The EU Commission says the money will help the West African state become more stable. EU Commission spokesman Alexandre Polack: "one of the causes of the crisis in Mali was the problematic situation where the states sometimes didn't deliver services. So what is needed is to increase the capacity of the states and local authorities to provide these services all over the territory."

Cyclone moves towards Bangladesh

The United Nations says a cyclone which is moving through the Indian Ocean could threaten over 8 million people along the coastlines of Bangladesh, India and Myanmar. In Myanmar, it's feared that heavy rains could swamp low-lying camps which have been housing tens of thousands of Rohingya Muslims who've fled sectarian violence.

Talks over Iran's nuclear programme

Iran will face more international pressure at two separate meetings today over its controversial nuclear programme. At talks underway in Vienna, the IAEA will be pushing for access to more Iranian sites, documents and scientists in an effort to clarify the nature of its nuclear activities. Later in Istanbul, the EU's foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton will meet Iran's chief nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili.

Cannes Film Festival opens

The Cannes film festival opens this evening. A re-make of "The Great Gatsby" - based on the F Scott Fitzgerald novel - will be opening the event.

The weather

There'll be frequent sunshine and it'll be warm with a strong föhn wind. There’ll be some cloud with the possibility of isolated showers in the region between Vorarlberg and Upper Carinthia. Highs will be ranging between 18 and 28 degrees.

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