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Europe’s debt crisis: The backlash against austerity After agreements reached in an effort to save the euro, citizens in Greece, France, Spain and elsewhere voice their frustrations.
May 15, 2012
Francois Hollande, France's president, right, and Angel Merkel, Germany's chancellor, walk past the guard of honor in the courtyard of the German Chancellory ahead of the Franco-German summit in Berlin, Germany. Hollande will spend his first hours as French president huddled in meetings today with Merkel, underscoring rising concern that Greece is headed out of the euro.
Michele Tantussi
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May 14, 2012
Greek Socialist leader Evangelos Venizelos, center, leaves the presidential palace after a meeting with President Karolos Papoulias in Athens. The critical meeting between the heads of three Greek political parties and the country's president to broker a deal on forming a coalition government ended late Monday with no agreement.
Petros Giannakouris
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AP
May 14, 2012
A man begs for alms in Madrid. The country got caught up in the uncertainty surrounding the euro currency zone and the electoral stalemate in Greece on Monday, with its borrowing costs rise and stock prices fall at alarming rates. The man’s banner reads in Spanish: "I am a 54-year-old Spanish man, I don't get any help from the government, I don't have any job, I need help please. I am looking for a job."
Emilio Morenatti
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AP
May 17, 2012
A woman uses an ATM at a branch of the Bankia bank in Madrid Thursday. The recently nationalized Spanish bank's shares plummeted Thursday after a newspaper said depositors were rushing to withdraw money.
Paul White
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AP
May 10, 2012
The British Labor Party's shadow home secretary, Yvette Cooper, speaks with police ahead of a march by police officers and public sector workers through central London during a day of protest across England. A reported 400,000 public-sector workers across the country were taking part in a 24-hour strike in dispute over government changes to pensions.
Dan Kitwood
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Getty Images
May 8, 2012
Nokia Siemens Networks workers march during a demonstration after the company announced 580 layoffs, in Milan, Italy. The anti-austerity verdict from European voters will likely force leaders to come up with more acceptable solutions to the debt crisis. The deep cuts in government spending have already worsened the situation in many countries, leading them into deeper economic distress and increasing already high unemployment.
Luca Bruno
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AP
May 7, 2012
People sit down to admire the view of Eiffel Tower in Paris, one day after the second round of the presidential elections. France handed the presidency to leftist Francois Hollande, a champion of government stimulus programs who says the state should protect the downtrodden, a victory that could deal a death blow to the drive for austerity that has been the hallmark of Europe in recent years.
Laurent Cipriani
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AP
May 7, 2012
A trader reacts at his desk in front of the DAX board at the Frankfurt stock exchange. Euro zone blue chips turned positive by mid-session on Monday, bouncing back from oversold territory after a knee-jerk reaction to French and German elections results sent the market to 4 1/2 month lows in early trade.The index had opened sharply lower after elections in Greece and France, which reflected public anger over austerity measures and cast doubt on the euro zone's ability to resolve its debt crisis.
Alex Domanski
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Reuters
May 7, 2012
Headlines are seen on newspapers outside a street kiosk following the parliamentary elections in Athens. As voters across Europe rebel against austerity measures imposed to stamp out the debt crisis, Citigroup said today that the risk of Greece leaving the euro by the end of 2013 has risen as high as 75 percent.
Simon Dawson
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Bloomberg News
May 6, 2012
Supporters of Socialist Party candidate for the presidential election Francois Hollande react after the first results of the second round of French presidential elections were announced at Bastille Square in Paris. Socialist Francois Hollande defeated conservative incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy to become France's next president, heralding a change in how Europe tackles its debt crisis and how France flexes its military and diplomatic muscle around the world.
Laurent Cipriani
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AP
May 6, 2012
Outgoing French President Nicolas Sarkozy leaves after addressing supporters at his Union for a Popular Movement (UMP) party headquarters after the the preliminary results of the second round of the presidential elections were announced in Paris. Sarkozy conceded defeat minutes after the polls closed, saying he had called Hollande to wish him "good luck" as the country's new leader.
Michel Euler
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AP
May 4, 2012
Evangelos Venizelos, Greece's former finance minister, gestures at a final pre-election rally on Syntagma Square, in Athens. Venizelos, who now leads the socialist Pasok party, appealed to Greeks to vote for "safe" solutions that will keep the country in the euro area in elections on May 6.
Simon Dawson
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Bloomberg News
May 2, 2012
A closed sign hangs across the abandoned slalom course at the canoe-kayak water park at the 2004 Olympic complex in the Hellenikon district of Athens. For the first time since their country became the byword for the European debt crisis, Greeks will have their say at the ballot box rather than in street protests about the economic pain they are enduring for a third successive year in the battle to retain membership of the euro.
Simon Dawson
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Bloomberg News
May 4, 2012
Evangelos Venizelos, Greece's former finance minister, speaks at a final pre-election rally on Syntagma Square, in Athens. Venizelos, who now leads the socialist Pasok party, appealed to Greeks to vote for "safe" solutions that will keep the country in the euro area in elections on May 6.
Simon Dawson
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Bloomberg News
May 4, 2012
The Eircom company logo is seen on a pay phone, operated by Eircom Group, in Dublin. Hutchison Whampoa Ltd. made a bid of about 2 billion euros ($2.6 billion) for Eircom Group, the Irish phone company in supervised credit protection to restructure its debt, people with knowledge of the matter said.
Aidan Crawley
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Bloomberg News
May 2, 2012
German Labour Minister Ursula von der Leyen addresses a news conference in Berlin. The German labor market continues to defy the euro zone debt crisis, even if seasonally adjusted unemployment increased slightly in April 2012. Recent data showed that the German economy, the biggest in Europe, contracted by 0.2 percent in the fourth quarter of 2011 and the latest output and orders data suggest little improvement can be expected in the first quarter.
Maurizio Gambarini
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AFP/Getty Images
May 1, 2012
A man takes pictures as thousands of people protest on May Day in Madrid. May Day protesters poured into streets across Europe, swept up in a wave of anti-austerity anger that threatens to topple leaders in Paris and Athens. From the eye of the euro zone debt storm in Madrid to the streets of Paris and Athens, where tottering governments face elections within days, marchers spoke of job losses, spending cuts and hard times.
Dani Pozo
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AFP/Getty Images
April 25, 2012
A visitor climbs down a stairway on an oven on the remains of a former steelworks that have been converted into a recreational park in Duisburg, Germany. The park, called the Landschaftspark Duisburg-Nord, allows visitors to walk all over the former steelworks grounds and is one several projects in the region that have converted former industrial facilities into cultural attractions. Duisburg and neighboring cities, which are at the heart of the industrial center of the Ruhr region, are heavily in debt as municipalities struggle to cope with falling revenues following the long and continual decline of the two traditionally most dominant industries in the region: coal mining and steel production. The state of North Rhine-Westphalia, where the Ruhr region is located, is scheduled to hold elections on May 13.
Sean Gallup
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Getty Images
April 24, 2012
A woman enters an apartment building as workers demolish a house in the Bruckhausen district near the ThyssenKrupp steelworks in Duisburg, Germany. Bruckhausen once housed steel workers and their families, though today about half the buildings stand empty and abandoned and many are being torn down. Duisburg and neighboring cities, which are at the heart of the industrial center of the Ruhr region, are heavily in debt as municipalities struggle to cope with falling revenue following the long and continual decline of the two traditionally most dominant industries in the region: coal mining and steel production. The state of North Rhine-Westphalia, where the Ruhr region is located, is scheduled to hold elections on May 13.
Sean Gallup
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Getty Images
April 25, 2012
Francois Hollande, France's Socialist presidential candidate, pauses during a news conference in Paris. Hollande escalated his criticism of Europe's debt-crisis response by aiming his fire directly at the duo of German Chancellor Angela Merkel and his campaign opponent, President Nicolas Sarkozy.
Balint Porneczi
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Bloomberg News
April 24, 2012
Pedestrians pass the Credit Suisse Group AG's headquarters in Zurich. Credit Suisse Group AG, the second-largest Swiss bank, reported a 96 percent decline in first-quarter profit after booking accounting charges related to its own debt and costs for 2011 bonuses.
Gianluca Colla
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Bloomberg News
April 23, 2012
Natacha Valla, economist at Goldman Sachs Group Inc., listens during an event at the New York Stock Exchange in New York. The "important steps" taken by the euro area to alleviate the region's sovereign debt crisis are beginning to bear fruit, said Christian Noyer, governor of the Bank of France and a member of the European Central Bank governing council.
Jin Lee
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Bloomberg News
April 23, 2012
Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte leaves royal palace Huis ten Bosch after meeting with Dutch Queen Beatrix in The Hague. Rutte was there to hand in his resignation after seven weeks of talks over the Dutch budget collapsed.
Peter Dejong
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AP
April 4, 2012
Mario Draghi, president of the European Central Bank, pauses during a news conference in Frankfurt, Germany. Draghi said policy makers are prepared to act against inflation threats if needed, while assuring investors that the ECB doesn't plan to withdraw emergency stimulus any time soon.
Hannelore Foerster
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Bloomberg News
April 2, 2012
Former Italian railway workers Luca Tardella, left, Ciro Spera, background left, and Giuseppe Gison, background right, sit in a self-made shelter at a train station in Milan. They are part of a group of former rail workers who have been protesting for 116 days against the dismissal of 800 night train workers. Unemployment in the euro zone hit its highest level since the currency was introduced back in 1999, official figures showed.
Luca Bruno
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AP
April 2, 2012
Former railway workers are camped out at a train station in Milan. Eurostat, the European Union's statistics office, said unemployment in the euro zone rose to 10.8 percent in February from 10.7 percent the previous month.
Luca Bruno
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AP
April 2, 2012
A young couple approaches an employment agency in Milan.
Luca Bruno
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AP
March 29, 2012
Thousands of people protest against recent labor reform in Madrid. Spanish unions angry over economic reforms are waging a general strike, challenging a conservative government not yet 100 days old and joining other troubled European workers in venting their frustration on the street.
Alberto Di Lolli
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AP
March 29, 2012
A demonstrator is detained by police officers during clashes at a strike in Barcelona. Spanish workers are angry over labor reforms that they see as flagrantly pro-business.
Emilio Morenatti
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AP
March 29, 2012
A demonstrator throws stones at the police during a strike in Barcelona. Spanish workers tried to bring the country to a halt by blocking traffic and closing factories.
Emilio Morenatti
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AP
March 29, 2012
A riot police officer charges at a demonstrator in Barcelona.
Manu Fernandez
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AP
March 29, 2012
Mirian Burrueco, 30, cries behind the broken glass of her shop after it was stormed by demonstrators during a strike in Barcelona.
Emilio Morenatti
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AP
March 29, 2012
Thousands of people gather in Puerta del Sol square in Madrid during a general strike.
Alberto Di Lolli
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AP
March 29, 2012
Stickers calling for a strike litter the street in Pamplona, Spain.
Alvaro Barrientos
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AP
March 21, 2012
Union members block the way to a garbage truck during the start of a general strike in Lisbon. A union called General Confederation of Portuguese Workers has called for a general strike in protest of an austerity package linked to a $103 billion bailout the government accepted in 2011.
Francisco Seco
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AP
March 21, 2012
In a trading room at a Portuguese bank, a broker points to a screen showing Portugal's treasury bill auction information. Portugal managed to borrow almost $2.65 billion at sharply lower prices in a short-term debt auction Wednesday, despite nagging concerns about its chances of beating a recession.
Francisco Seco
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AP
March 20, 2012
A street cleaner in Lisbon walks past graffiti that reads "Everybody on general strike March 22."
Francisco Seco
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AP
March 13, 2012
Greek Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos, left, speaks with members of his delegation during a meeting of E.U. finance ministers in Brussels. The decision to give Spain some more leeway on cutting this year's deficit is already triggering demands for more fiscal leniency for other European countries.
Virginia Mayo
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AP
March 13, 2012
German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble, left, greets Danish Economy Minister Margrethe Vestager, third left, during a meeting of E.U. finance ministers.
Virginia Mayo
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AP
March 12, 2012
Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti, right, speaks with European Central Bank President Mario Draghi during the meeting. The 17 euro countries are trying to focus on issues beyond the Greek crisis and deal with longer-term issues in their currency union.
Virginia Mayo
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AP
March 12, 2012
In Brussels, a woman passes a delivery truck that displays the euro symbol and the Dutch words ”Prices in free fall.“
Virginia Mayo
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AP
March 10, 2012
Greece’s Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos speaks during a conference of the PASOK socialist party at Faliro near Athens. The speech came one day after Greece's private creditors agreed to take cents on the euro in the biggest debt writedown in history.
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AP
March 8, 2012
A pedestrian passes a sign that reads, ''One euro, price haircut'' in Athens.
Thanassis Stavrakis
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AP
March 7, 2012
A broker walks past a screen displaying stock market activity at the exchange in Madrid. World stock markets cautiously rebounded Wednesday in a week that saw Europe's debt crisis return to center stage over concerns Greece would not attract enough investor support for a deal meant to head off a messy default.
Paul White
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AP
March 7, 2012
In Pamplona, Spain, students mobilize against planned government cuts. On March 29, trade unions and students will go on a general strike in the Basque Country and Navarra province.
Alvaro Barrientos
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AP
March 7, 2012
Protesters in Pamplona, Spain carry a banner that reads in Basque: ''Fight. Defend your rights.'' Spain's economy is still struggling, with more than five million people unemployed.
Alvaro Barrientos
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AP
March 6, 2012
A trade union protester shouts through a megaphone during a demonstration outside a pension fund office in Greece. Unions oppose the participation of pension funds in an debt-swap deal between the Greek state and private bond holders, warning that it could lead to steeper benefit cuts.
Thanassis Stavrakis
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AP
March 2, 2012
In Pamplona, Spain, a woman shouts during a rally calling for a general strike. Spain's prime minister said Friday that his recession-ridden country will miss its deficit goal for this year, risking sanctions from the European Union.
Alvaro Barrientos
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AP
March 2, 2012
Thessaloniki residents crowd around a farmer selling cheap potatoes at the Greek city's university campus. Academic staff and students have arranged for a group of farmers to sell 50 tons of potatoes at nearly a third of supermarket prices. Similar sales are planned in several towns over the next few days.
Nikolas Giakoumidis
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AP
March 2, 2012
Greek Prime Minister Lucas Papademos signs the Treaty on Stability, Coordination and Governance in the Economic and Monetary Union during an E.U. Summit in Brussels. The leaders of 25 European states have signed a new treaty designed to prevent the 17 euro countries from running up huge debts in order to prevent a repeat of the current crisis afflicting the single-currency zone.
Francois Lenoir
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AP
March 2, 2012
French President Nicolas Sarkozy, center, checks his watch as he sits with Spain's Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, left, and Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti before signing the treaty.
Francois Lenoir
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AP
March 1, 2012
Christine Lagarde, managing director of the International Monetary Fund, speaks with Luxembourg’s Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker during an E.U. finance ministers meeting.
Yves Logghe
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AP
March 1, 2012
A man enters an office of the Labor Force Employment Organization in Athens. The graffiti under the OAED logo reads “Snow or rain the jobless are always hungry.”
Thanassis Stavrakis
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AP
Feb. 29, 2012
Trade union members gather during a protest outside the European Union's office in Athens.
Thanassis Stavrakis
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AP
Feb. 28, 2012
In Athens, a protesting firefighter holds a Greek flag and flares during a demonstration against the government's austerity measures.
Petros Giannakouris
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AP
Feb. 27, 2012
The German Parliament signed off on its country’s contribution to the $173 billion rescue package for Greece.
Axel Schmidt
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DAPD
Feb. 27, 2012
German Chancellor Angela Merkel talks with Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble during the debate prior to the voting of the Parliament about a new Greek rescue package in Berlin.
Markus Schreiber
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AP
Feb. 27, 2012
Merkel speaks before German Parliament votes on whether to approve Greece's bailout package.
Clemens Bilan
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DAPD
Feb. 21, 2012
Greek Prime Minister Lucas Papademos, right, and Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos address the news media after a meeting of euro-zone finance ministers at the E.U. Council in Brussels. After more than 12 hours of talks, the countries that use the euro agreed to hand Greece $170 billion in extra bailout loans to save it from a potentially calamitous default next month.
Thierry Charlier
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AP
Feb. 20, 2012
A shoe shiner tries to keep warm next to a graffiti-tagged wall in Athens.
Thanassis Stavrakis
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AP
Feb. 21, 2012
Blind protesters march during an anti-austerity demonstration near the prime minister’s office in Athens.
Dimitri Messinis
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AP
Feb. 21, 2012
A protester shouts against austerity measures during a demonstration in Athens.
Dimitri Messinis
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AP
Feb. 20, 2012
Christine Lagarde, managing director of the International Monetary Fund, speaks with Greek Prime Minister Lucas Papademos during a round table meeting of euro-zone finance ministers at the E.U. Council building in Brussels.
Yves Logghe
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AP
Feb. 13, 2012
An employee of the Greek Stock Exchange passes charts showing a gain in the markets. Stocks around the world rose Monday after Greece's Parliament approved a new set of austerity measures that were required by international lenders in exchange for an emergency bailout.
Thanassis Stavrakis
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AP
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