EUROPE MORNING UPDATE: UBP Scrambles to Explain Madoff Ties

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THE WALL STREET JOURNAL Europe Morning Update

December 30, 2008 -- 3:09 a.m. EST

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TODAY'S NEWS
(WSJ.COM SUBSCRIPTION REQUIRED TO READ FULL STORIES)

Swiss private bank UBP is scrambling to explain its ties to Madoff. Half of the bank's 22 funds of funds put some money into Madoff-related vehicles.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123058674048040525.html?mod=djemEMU

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The IMF's top economist endorsed Obama's approach to economic stimulus and urged countries to consider offering a kind of "recession insurance."

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123057112442239827.html?mod=djemEMU

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Telenor won dismissal of a $2.8 billion fine the Norwegian firm had been ordered to pay Russia's VimpelCom.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123057921719840175.html?mod=djemEMU

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Germany's retail sales rose about 1% in December, in sharp contrast to grim holiday-shopping results from other major economies.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123058789207140531.html?mod=djemEMU

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Belgian bank KBC said lower ratings for a range of collateralized debt obligations will reduce its full-year net earnings by $1.3 billion.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123054794455339189.html?mod=djemEMU

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Roadside bombs, long the biggest danger facing Western forces in Iraq, have also become the primary threat to forces in Afghanistan.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123058042777040257.html?mod=djemEMU

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Italy's business confidence fell to its lowest level since the index began in 1991, indicating Europe's fourth-largest economy is likely to fall into a deep recession.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123058025673340233.html?mod=djemEMU

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Insurers' losses from natural disasters surged about 50% to $45 billion in 2008, with Hurricane Ike creating the greatest costs, according to reinsurer Munich Re.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123056478912139453.html?mod=djemEMU

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U.S. stocks trimmed losses but still ended lower, with Dow Chemical's deal for Rohm & Haas in question. Crude-oil futures rallied to close just above $40 a barrel on tensions in the Middle East.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123055110595939077.html?mod=djemEMU

To read any of the articles above, please see: http://www.wsj.com

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FEATURES
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LG Electronics hopes to get a boost from sponsoring London's New Year's Eve fireworks, the city's first sale of sponsorship rights to the event.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123058890857640661.html?mod=djemEMU

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European commercial property is in free fall and there ian't any sign of a parachute.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123032575243835911.html?mod=djemEMU

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Mitt Romney wants to stop sleeping in his suit. Martha Stewart will try to save publishing. More resolutions from men and women who exist here to help us better know ourselves.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123033735965236411.html?mod=djemEMU

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