From AFP:  Canada and the European Union will meet their target to sign an "ambitious" free trade agreement in 2011, Canadian International Trade Minister Peter Van Loan said Thursday in Bucharest.

From Judy Dempsey, the New York Times:  While the Moscow-Berlin political relationship gets a lot of attention, German companies have come to realize that the money to be made in Russia is overshadowed by the prospects even farther afield in China.

From Landon Thomas Jr., the New York Times:  For many in aging and debt-weary Europe, which will be lucky to eke out a little more than 1 percent growth this year, Turkey’s economic renaissance — last week it reported a stunning 11.4 percent expansion for the first quarter, second only to China — poses a completely new question: who needs the other one more — Europe or Turkey?

From Josh Rogin, Foreign Policy:  With Russian President Dmitry Medvedev visiting Washington Thursday, the issue of Russia's occupation of Georgia is now on the agenda.

On December 3 the Atlantic Council, in collaboration with Asia Society Washington, hosted a panel discussion on the Pakistan economy. This event was the second in a series of events about Pakistan; the first, on October 22, dealt with civil-military relations in the country. -->

FT reports that, "Ireland, easily the best performing eurozone economy since the birth of the

The crisis on Wall Street drove oil prices down 4% to their lowest in seven months on Tuesday.  The Reuters-Jefferies CRB index, a benchmark for raw materials prices, was down to its lowest since January amid predictions that the demand for commodities and global economic slowdown would impact consumer and trader spending.  The

Workers in eastern Europe work more hours and take less vacation than their counterparts to the west.