leaders of the eurozone's two biggest economies do not see eye to eye on several major issues in the eu, so a visit of the exhibition of german paintings at the louvre was perhaps a chance for them to get to know each other better. at the talks held later, the two leaders put on a show of unity. they said their countries would weather the financial crisis together and would present a united front at next month's eu summit on growth and employment. >> much of our discussion was about mobilizing the european funds from 2014 through 2020. and including them in our future planning. >> they also pledged to press ahead with plans for a so- called common economic government in the eurozone. >> we need more coordination of our economic policies. that should be based on harmonizing our institutions to promote closer cooperation with n the europe group and other countries that would like to be included. >> as people all over europe are being asked to tighten their belts, the french presidency has set an example, announcing it is to auction off more than 1000 bottles from its well-stock wine cella

. >> the german parliament has ratified the eu accession treaty. officials say the balkan country's membership is an essential element in unifying the entire continent, but at what cost? >> experts forecast losses of 500 million euros for the croats. we explained. >> he is unhappy whenever he looks at this new border post. the croatian mandarin orange grower knows that wherever there is a border, there will be customs tariffs, and that will make his mandarins too expensive for neighboring bosnians. this will be the eu's new border, dividing what has now been a shared economy. >> i believe that it will make everything more expensive. that exporting will cost more. >> it is the central free-trade agreement between non-european countries. and was promoted by brussels as a transitional stage towards eu membership, but once croatia joins the eu, a to will have to leave, which will then levy a 20% import tariff on croatian mandarins. that will cost him and his wholesalers half their export income. >> one alternative for us would be the key u.s. and weste

leaders of the eurozone's two biggest economies do not see eye to eye on several major issues in the eu, so a visit of the exhibition of german paintings at the louvre was perhaps a chance for them to get to know each other better. at the talks held later, the two leaders put on a show of unity. they said their countries would weather the financial crisis together and would present a united front at next month's eu summit on growth and employment. >> much of our discussion was about mobilizing the european funds from 2014 through 2020. and including them in our future planning. >> they also pledged to press ahead with plans for a so- called common economic government in the eurozone. >> we need more coordination of our economic policies. that should be based on harmonizing our institutions to promote closer cooperation with n the europe group and other countries that would like to be included. >> as people all over europe are being asked to tighten their belts, the french presidency has set an example, announcing it is to auction off more than 1000 bottles from its well-stock wine cella

own party. >>> there's no ala carte for eu members. an exit would be harmful for the block. >>> and japan's struggling sharp posts a bigger than expected annual loss. it hopes a new president will help bring it back into profit in the year ahead. >> announcer: you're watching "worldwide exchange," bringing you business news from around the globe. >> we'll kick off with the iea data. the production in north america continues to grow at a record pace and refining capacity is expected to outpace demand in high growth emerging markets. this according to the international energy agency. 3.6 million barrels a day come out of maintenance and new saudi arabian capacity comes online. the oil production -- north american oil production will dominate world supply growth over the next five years, as well. we'll keep your eyes on that. clearly, prices are slipping on the back of that report. nymex down to 95.16. meanwhile, plenty of corporate news. business is not for sale accord to go dan loeb who reportedly wants a spin-off for more value. japan'

. >> here is what is coming up in the next half-hour -- tax fraud takes center stage at an eu mini summit in brussels. leaders search for the missing trillion. >> has a lot and syrian forces are reported to of taking control of a strategic reddens -- rebel stronghold that leaks damascus with syrian ports. >> and the anniversary of richard wagner's birth. how germany is celebrating the controversial composer. >> in a period of record recession and unemployment, the eu has decided to aggressively go after a reported one trillion euros in tax loopholes lost in loopholes. >> leaders backed by the european parliament have agreed to halve the edge -- the figure by 2020. they have also set a deadline to end banking secrecy. >> luxembourg's prime minister smiled for the cameras but had to make major concessions. after initially resisting, he agreed to share other information. now his focus is on negotiating a similar agreement with switzerland. >> what we are planning to do with the automatic exchange of information is again unprecedented. unprecedented. we could not speak in those terms on those

action and if and when, if eu takes action, china takes eu to the wto. but frankly speaking, we are not there yet. at this stage, what happens in europe, as it should, is a debate within the european system whether it's legally, politically, economically a good thing to hit chinese export to europe in solar equipment or in telecoms equipment with extra custom duties, and this debate is ongoing within the european union. as always in the european union, it's happening very much in the public, but at the end of the day, the commission was the one that will take the decision, needs a single majority among the member states. >> indeed. >> so, at the end of the day, if more than half of the 27 members object to such a measure at the end of the procedure, then it will not happen. if the commission wishes to do this because of its own analytical finding, it needs a majority in the council of ministers. >> indeed. let me ask you about this fight because it pits an emerging market economy against developed markets, and this is one of the developments from the eme

that's top of the agenda at an eu leaders summit. the president of the european parliament, martin schulz, told cnbc the current system does need to be fixed. >> there's debate about morality and ethics. let's reform the system to bring back more solidarity, and via more solidarity, more coherence to the society. >>> and fed chairman ben bernanke's off to the hill today with his latest assessment of the u.s. economy. investors will look for any clues of a shift in fed policy. >>> right now we turn our attention to the uk as we get the release of the bank of england minutes from the last meeting. and here we go. ah! 6.3. we kept it at 6.3 for further asset purchase. king fisher miles repeated calls for 5 billion more qe. the minority thought more qe would lift growth and reduce unemployment. the minority thought more qe would speed the normalization of the policy. the minority thought the weakness of rebalancing would push up sterling. they say that the gdp level at the end of the second quarter likely to be 0.7% higher than the febru

. >> here is what is coming up in the next half-hour -- tax fraud takes center stage at an eu mini summit in brussels. leaders search for the missing trillion. >> has a lot and syrian forces are reported to of taking control of a strategic reddens -- rebel stronghold that leaks damascus with syrian ports. >> and the anniversary of richard wagner's birth. how germany is celebrating the controversial composer. >> in a period of record recession and unemployment, the eu has decided to aggressively go after a reported one trillion euros in tax loopholes lost in loopholes. >> leaders backed by the european parliament have agreed to halve the edge -- the figure by 2020. they have also set a deadline to end banking secrecy. >> luxembourg's prime minister smiled for the cameras but had to make major concessions. after initially resisting, he agreed to share other information. now his focus is on negotiating a similar agreement with switzerland. >> what we are planning to do with the automatic exchange of information is again unprecedented. unprecedented. we could not speak in those terms on those

i therefore believe in eu-u.s. comprehensive trade investment agreement would greatly benefit the economy is of both parties as worldly leaders. the approval of negotiations mandate without first excluding cultural services is risky. then services relate to one of the united europe's fundamental principles, mainly, -- so far, the u.s. has successfully upheld and interrogation during the liberalization process. both bilaterally and in the wto. at the same time, we have supported the it option on the protection and promotion of iversity of cultural it's -- cultural expressions. bulgaria, a country i know best, finds it to maintain the arts. it is necessary for the eu to secure the exclusion or at least to clearly define and uphold the red lines in relation to the agreement. otherwise, cultural may be easier downgraded to merchandise. thank you. >> thank you, madam president. commissioner, my minister. is start up of negotiations something i have mixed feelings about. i certainly welcome the opportunities this offers.

from the uk and france, the eu possum bar go on sending weapons to syria will end. individual countries will be able to deliver arms to rebels as long as they are approved by the european union and used to protect civilians. andrew symonds is live for us with more on this. no doubt you're going through the complications this could all cause, but first i must refer our viewers to the fact that you came from inside syria. a massively changing situation is what you witnessed. , david, it hasly changed. the whole powershift towards those who have the most money, the most guns. that is where we get into a difficult area because this eu lifting of the embargo in certain cases where, for instance, the uk may ask to do it, and france, another country that push this through him a lobbied very hard, which groups will they back? how will they make safeguards? how will they ensure that they fit the restrictions of the eu that the guns are only used to protect civilians? these are all questions. the bigger question -- the fact that eu leaders that represent the opposition forces

details with european non-eu members such as switzerland. this comes after austria and luxembourg agreed to drop their opposition. >> as luxembourg's finance minister has already said, we expect the automatic exchange of data to become the international standard. >> for now, the deal would be limited to private accounts and not include trust and other banking tricks that allow investors to hide their identity. >> i still do not know what would be the legal base of this. >> austria and luxembourg had vetoed a deal over fears that an end to banking secrecy would scare off investors. the german finance minister is happy that members are now on the same page. >> everyone should understand what the changes imply it and we should not create stumbling blocks for those who are shifting their position. >> some officials are wary of the expanding rules to non- members. leaders will meet in brussels next week hoping to seal the deal. >> european authorities have raided the offices of several oil companies as part of an investigation into possible price

now the eu is reacting with plans to impose tariffs of around 47%. beijing says that's a mistake. >> handling trade friction we hope both sides can uphold the constructive and cooperative spirit and properly resolve differences and disputes through constructive dialogue and negotiations. we also hope the eu is cautious in its use of trade protectionism measures. >> the tariffs are due to come into effect in june and are initially set to last until december. by then the european commission hopes to have completed a probe into allegation that is china s providing illegal subzizz. many europeans have given up hope of finding a job. the youth unemployment rate continues to climb especially in southern europe. a growing number of young people have been out of work for more than a year. >> many young people are migrating looking for opportunities in other countries. those that stay and cannot get a job there are lessons, for them getting a job inside or outside the country decreases. >> the international labor organization warns that the crisis could creat

the eu has threatened punitive measures if factory bosses fail to implement measures to improve worker safety. >> in the u.s., the man accused of imprisoning three women in his home for a decade has been formally charged. 52-year-old ariel castro did not enter a plea when he entered court in the city of cleveland. he's charged with at your accounts of kidnapping and three counts of rape. the court said a bond of $8 million. he is reportedly being placed on suicide watch and will be kept in isolation. >> ok, quiz question now -- what do winston churchill and pope john paul ii have in common? well, they are previous winners of the charlemagne prize. >> the prize is awarded each year to a leader who has made a contribution to european unity. this year's winner is the president of lithuania. >> sheet is a former eu commissioner who has led her country through a tough austerity program, and today, at the prize giving, she had a lot to say about europe's current crisis. >> the charlemagne medal was bestowed in recognition of her efforts to advance european integration. as the eu's finance co

given the, commission's mandate to launch the eu-u.s. trade and investment ofotiations, the potential these bilateral trade relations remain somewhat untapped. this is mainly due to the numerous trade and investment barriers, as well as to the challenges in the area, financial services, and ip. all of these are major impediments to an integrated transatlantic market. eu-u.s.ore believe in comprehensive trade investment agreement would greatly benefit the economy is of both parties as worldly these -- leaders. the approval of negotiations mandate if that -- without first excluding cultural services is risky. then services relate to one of the united europe's fundamental principles, mainly, -- so far, the u.s. has successfully upheld and interrogation during the liberalization process. both bilaterally and in the wto. at the same time, we have supported the it option on the protection and promotion of diversity of cultural it's russians. both garriott, a country i know provincial to promote the odds. it is necessary for the eu to secure th

one controversial topic is likely to be eu plans to impose duties on cheap chinese solar panels. the first stop was switzerland where they announced a new free trade deal. ♪ >> atypically swiss welcome -- a typically swiss welcome, very harmonious. it is no coincidence he kicked off the european tour in switzerland and not in a european union country. he did not face tough questions about protectionism. they signed a preliminary agreement on a free trade deal which both sides hailed as a milestone. [applause] while addressing swiss , he turned his attention to the eu, criticizing brussels over plans to investigate chinese telecommunications companies and impose duties on chinese solar panels, which he said would not yield benefits for the eu. he hoped the eu would consider trade relations as a whole and uphold the principle of free trade. focus of talkse in berlin, but neither chinese -- china nor germany are likely to kick off a trade war that would hurt both countries. >> let's take a brief look at other news making headlines around the world. in sweden, police say urban .iot

letter -- it must carry out eu policies to the letter. she wants her country to be the star pupil. >> the author of two biographies of the president believes her leadership abilities leave something to be desired. and you have got to take a look at her personal history. she started out as a bureaucrat. a government administrator. her primary concern is to follow the rules to the letter. but good politicians need imagination. they should also be independent and able to think strategically. >> in 2009, as the effects of the european financial crisis were being felt across the continent, she returned to lithuania to run for president. it was a nasty campaign. for example, she was accused of being a kgb agent. the yellow press claimed that she was a lesbian. the candidate denied the allegations. despite all this, she went on to win the election in a landslide and became lithuania's first female president. >> her campaign platform, although it was short on specifics, was based on a clear political vision -- the fight against corruption, the ol

. , our headlines this hour -- >> eu foreign ministers meeting in brussels remain divided over whether syrian rebels should be given weapons. >> the chinese prime minister has ended his first visit to germany, expressing his hope that the two nations can become a trade team as trade partners. >> the french film about a lesbian love affair wins the coveted palme d'or at cannes. there is still no agreement in brussels, where eu foreign ministers continue to debate syria. they are negotiating over whether or european arms embargo for both sides should be extended thomas or whether europe should arm some rebels. >> written and france -- extended, or whether europe should arm some rebels. >> britain and france -- if no deal is reached -- >> more than one million refugees have fled the civil war. millions more remain trapped, unable to escape the violence. the death toll mounts by the day. the conflict spreads -- threatens to spread to nearby countries. richard and france want to drop arts of the embargo -- written and france -- britain and france want to drop hearts of the -- parts of the e

letter -- it must carry out eu policies to the letter. she wants her country to be the star pupil. >> the author of two biographies of the president believes her leadership abilities leave something to be desired. and you have got to take a look at her personal history. she started out as a bureaucrat. a government administrator. her primary concern is to follow the rules to the letter. but good politicians need imagination. they should also be independent and able to think strategically. >> in 2009, as the effects of the european financial crisis were being felt across the continent, she returned to lithuania to run for president. it was a nasty campaign. for example, she was accused of being a kgb agent. the yellow press claimed that she was a lesbian. the candidate denied the allegations. despite all this, she went ono e and became lithuania's first female president. >> her campaign platform, although it was short on specifics, was based on a clear political vision -- the fight against corruption, the oligarchs, and the underground eco

the eu competition commissioner says internet search giant google will probably have to come up with more concessions if it wants to avert a $5 billion fine for anti-competitive practices in europe. >> over a dozen rival companies accuse google of squeezing them out of the results of search queries. the eu opened an investigation, and last month, google came up with a list of solutions, but many critics say those proposals are inadequate. shares in a spanish finance group plunged, enraging small shareholders who said they were cheated into making risky investments. created in 2010 from the merger of seven troubled savings banks, it has become a symbol of spain's banking crisis. last year, it was bailed out by the spanish government and has received billions of euros from the eurozone rescue package. >> hundreds of customers joined a protest outside a madrid branch of the bank. most are small savers who were advised -- they say cheated -- into converting their savings of the bank into shares which have plummeted in value. they are chanting the words "thieves," and "you are robbing you

the eu competition commissioner says internet search giant google will probably have to come up with more concessions if it wants to avert a $5 billion fine for anti-competitive practices in europe. >> over a dozen rival companies accuse google of squeezing them out of the results of search queries. the eu opened an investigation, and last month, google came up with a list of solutions, but many critics say those proposals are inadequate. shares in a spanish finance group plunged, enraging small shareholders who said they were cheated into making risky investments. created in 2010 from the merger of seven troubled savings banks, it has become a symbol of spain's banking crisis. last year, it was bailed out by the spanish government and has received billions of euros from the eurozone rescue package. >> hundreds of customers joined a protest outside a madrid branch of the bank. most are small savers who were advised -- they say cheated -- into converting their savings of the bank into shares which have plummeted in value. they are chanting the words "thieves," and "you are robbing you

you are talking here today about a new eu/u.s. trade deal. members are talking about leaving the european union. what is your message to those pushing for an early referendum? if there were a referendum tomorrow, how would you vote? >> you told david cameron that you wanted a strong u.k. and a strong eu. how concerned are you that members are contemplating withdrawal? on syria, what gives you any confidence that the russians are going to help you on this? >> on the issue of the referendum, there's not going to be a referendum tomorrow. it will give the british public and entirely false choice between the status quo which i do not think is acceptable. i want to see britain's relationship in prove. i do not think this is the choice the british public wants or deserve. everything i do is guided by a very simple principle. what is in the national interest of britain's tax is it appeared that will make our country's more prosperous that will help our businesses? we will push for this transatlantic trade deal. is it in our interest to reform the un

i want to see britain's relationship with the eu change. and i don't think that is the choice the british public want or british public deserve. everything i do in this area is guided by a very simple principle, which is what is in the national interests of britain. is it in the national interests of britain to have a transatlantic trade deal that will get people to work, help our businesses? yes, it is. and so we will push for this tra transatlantic trade deal. is it in our interest to reform the european union? to make it more open, competitive, flexible, and to improve britain's place within the union? yes, it is in our national interest. not only in our national interest, it is achievable because europe has to change because the single currency is driving change for that part of the european union that is in the single currency. and just as they want changes, so i believe britain is quite entitled to ask for and to get changes in response. and then finally, is it in britain's national interest once we have achieved those changes but bef

rising support -- why a political party wants britain to leave the eu. dirty business -- making money with stray dogs in romania. and salty air -- ukraine's underground sanatorium. let's first take a look at how populist parties are shaking up the traditional political landscape across europe. in times of economic crisis, a growing number of voters tend to identify with populist slogans. in italy, that a grid of -- beppe grillo's 5-our movement calls for an end to austerity. in britain, the u.k. independence party blames the eu for britain's current problems. skepticism towards the european project does have a long tradition in the u.k., but it is growing, especially in rural areas. in the upcoming local elections, the party could be a force to be reckoned with. >> for many residents of the small market town in central england, home is where the heart is. but not everyone would go as far as this town councilor. every day, the man turns up at the public toilets to clean them himself. before the party got on to the ramsey town council, the climate's would

european sugar producers already control most of the eu market. according to eu quotas, 85% must come from european production. that leaves only 15% to other regions where sugar cane is harvested like africa, latin america, and asia. the confectionery industry claims that it has to pay inflated prices for sugar, which is a key ingredient in its products. world market prices for sugar are considerably lower than those in europe. >> car sales in europe have increased for the first time in 18 months, giving rise to hopes that the state of the battered auto industry may be improving. the european automate this association says new car registration rose by 1.7% in april despite a slumping economy and growing unemployment. sales are up in germany while the drop in france and in italy. moving on to equities, stocks in europe have surged by about 10% over the past month. >> that is due in part to the european central bank's recent rate cut, and investors are jumping on every debt trying to make up for the losses of the past. >> private investors are fight

>> the syrian arms race, the eu has ended and on arming the rebels. hello and welcome to al jazeera live from doha. seeking forgiveness, honduras two biggest and most dangerous gangs colley truce. but why? a remarkable rescue in china. a newborn baby is cut free from a sewage pipe. and breaking down the barriers. europe's new plans to help workers travel to where the jobs are. the syrian arms race is accelerating. rushes to ship antiaircraft missiles to the government and a lifting onalled armed rebels. >> these are the weapons that are causing so much controversy. a shipment of best 300 russian surface-to-air missiles designed to defend against aircraft and cruise missile of tax. -- cruise missile attacks. russia says it is merely fulfilling treaty agreements. but we believe such steps very much restrain some hotheads to transform this conflict into an international conflict with outside forces taking part. , perhaps likeces israel, in the event it launches more strikes inside syria, like this one which started military facilities outside of damascus

the eu predicts greece will make further progress in coming weeks. meanwhile, china and the you could be heading towards another trade dispute. and he has announced it is beginning a one-year review of steel tubing imports from the e you. >> the review could result in new tariffs. the move comes days after the european commission approved new tariffs on chinese solar panels following rampant complaints of chinese price dumping in europe. the eu import tariffs, which go into effect in early june, will range from 37% to as much as 68%. the list price on the chinese products. >> still to come, the world of sailing is morning olympic medal winner and 2 cents in. >> first, a look at other news from around the world. family man accused of imprisoning three women in the u.s. city of cleveland could face the death penalty. the ohio state prosecutor says ariel castro raped and abused the women for years and used violence to cause several miscarriages. the court will decide if it constitutes murder. >> there has been a standoff at a holy site in jerusalem. hun

european sugar producers already control most of the eu market. according to eu quotas, 85% must come from european production. that leaves only 15% to other regions where sugar cane is harvested like africa, latin america, and asia. the confectionery industry claims that it has to pay inflated prices for sugar, which is a key ingredient in its products. world market prices for sugar are considerably lower than those in europe. >> car sales in europe have increased for the first time in 18 months, giving rise to hopes that the state of the battered auto industry may be improving. european automate this association says new car registration rose by 1.7% in april despite a slumping economy and growing unemployment. sales are up in germany while the drop in france and in italy. moving on to equities, stocks in europe have surged by about 10% over the past month. >> that is due in part to the european central bank's recent rate cut, and investors are jumping on every debt trying to make up for the losses of the past. >> private investors are fighting

the eu says it will push china to ease regulations. this includes a rule that make it mandatory to launch joint businesses for local firms in china. the commission says it helps to start talks this fall. more business head lilines next hour. here is a check on markets. >>> first it was hollywood then came india's baliwood a recent festival in folk owe feature ed films made there. >> reporter: this is a nigerian thriller about two men whose lives are transformed when they find a statue with hidden powers. the film won five awards at africa's version of the oscars. it was a box office smash across africa and has screened in the u.s. and europe. the film's director visited tokyo to show his two films. >> i believe to be able to show the world that we're one and we speak the same language, you know, because entertainment is one thing that brings the world together. >> reporter: nigeria's film industry, nollywood releases more than 1,000 titles a year, peaking it the world's send largest producer of films outside of bollywood. they're outse

some eu companies are against the move. they say it could be detrimental to firms in the block that rely on solar panels from china. they suggest priority should be given to the eu as a whole. european markets ended higher on monday while markets in the u.s. and the uk were closed for a public holiday. germany's main index rose .9 of a percent. for more on japanese markets let's go to eileen lee. japanese stocks took another battering on monday. how are we kicking off this monday? >> another loss on monday. let's have a look at the opening levels. the nikkei is down 0.16%. on monday the nikk srted the trading session in the negative territory. it fell a mere 14,000 points and ended the day more than 3% lower. in fact it lost almost 10% in just three trading sessions. also yesterday investors received the minutes from last month's bank of japan policy meeting. we showed how officials were divided over the central bank's aim of achieving a 2% inflation target in two years. now analysts say investors especially foreign investo

i know david has been very active in seeking some reforms internal to the eu. those are tough negotiations. there are a lot of countries involved in direct ties that. but so long as we have not yet evaluated how successful those reforms will be, i would be interested in seeing whether or not those are successful. again, i want to emphasize these are issues for the people of the united kingdom to make a decision about, not hours. -- not hours. davidespect to syria, said it very well. if you look objectively, the entire world community has an interest in seeing a syria that is not engaged in sectarian war, in which the syrian people are not being slaughtered, that an island of peace as opposed potentially an outpost for extremists. that's not just true for the united states. it's not just true for great britain or countries like jordan and turkey that border syria, but it's also true for russia. i am pleased to hear david had a very constructive conversation with president clinton -- president putin shortly after the summer station that took place between john ke

and i think the uk's participation in the eu is an expression of its influence. and its role in the world as well as obviously a very important economic partnership. now, ultimately, the people of the uk have to make decisions for themselves. i will say this, that the david's basic point, that you probably want to see if you can fix what's broken in a very important relationship before you break it off. makes some sense to me. and i know that david's been very active in seeking some reforms internal to the eu. those are tough negotiations, you got a lot of countries involved. i recognize that. but so long as we haven't yet evaluated how successful those reforms will be. you know, i at least would be interested in seeing whether or not those are successful. before rendering a final judgment. again, i want to emphasize these are issues for the people of the united kingdom to make a decision about. not ours. with respect to syria, i think david said it very well -- if you look objectively, the entire world community has an interest in seeing a syria that is not enga

and i think the uk's participation in the eu is an expression of its influence. and its role in the world as well as obviously a very important economic partnership. now, ultimately the people of the uk have to make decisions for themselves. i will say this, that david's basic point that you probably want to see if you can fix what's broken in a very important relationship before you break it off makes some sense to me. and i know that david's been very active in seeking some reforms internal to the eu. those are tough negotiations. you got a lot of countries involved. i recognize that. but so long as we haven't yet evaluated how successful those reforms will be. i at least would be interested in seeing whether or not those are successful before rendering a final judgment. again, i want to emphasize these are issues for the people of the united kingdom to make a decision about, not ours. with respect to syria, i think david said it very well. if you look objectively, the entire world's community has an interest in seeing a syria that is not engaged in sectarian w

. >> the country is the poorest in the you already -- eu lreadalre. >> absolutely. grappling with a dire economic crisis and political problems to boot. an electorate here which appears to have entirely lost faith and belief in politics and the political system. this election has been marred and riddled with claims and allegations of fraud on a potentially epic scale, hundreds of thousands of additional ballot papers, the printer and discovered on saturday, some discovered allegedly on sunday already marked in favor of one of the parties. and more than 200 individual claims of vote fraud reported by election observers. i'm told by observers at nothing like this has ever been seen in an election. there have been eight now since the collapse of communism in 1989. deep apathy and his taste among the electorate. among thetate electorate. 48% showed up to vote. very few predicted benefit or hope from this election. >> jonah hull, thank you. lots more still to come, including, when saints go marching in. pope francis canonize his hundreds of martyrs who died 600 years ago

. >>> and talks between the eu and china over solar panel trading come to a head as brussels faces increasing pressure from member states to drop planned import duties. jay you're watching "worldwide exchange," bringing you business news from around the globe. >>> good morning. let's bring you up to speed with the news just crossing from volkswagen. the company is giving up on the wage that is trying to reach with the german labor union. the talks concern near 100,000 employees at the german automakers plans in western germany where many of them are located. this still applies to the west german vw plans and it will run for 20 months until february 28th, 2015. so the deal being struck is over the course of -- well, a couple of years, in fact. not quite two years, though. so if you look at the date on the timing of this. we are waiting for just a little bit more data. let me check and see what else we have crossing. in terms of the deal and the actual pay increase, vw says the deal will increase wages from 3.4% from september. that's the first element of this deal. the deal includes a one-time

will they move closer to the eu and may be becoming a member? our real they look east? russia is offering the possibility of a eurasian economic union. they cannot have it both ways. there are some eu states like the baltic states and hundred not want them as a member. amongst those countries the mayor more willing to turn a blind eye on what is happening in the case of tymoshenko. >> nina, thank you so much. >> the new italian prime minister has held talks with german chancellor angela merkel here in berlin. as the first of in european tour aiming to shift the focus from austerity to job creation. >> he wants to restore confidence in the italian political system. he is looking for help from berlin to do that. >> his first foreign visit taking him to berlin. his mission, to convince german chancellor angela merkel met with struggling economies is a flourishing economy. >> what we need to be doing is devoting this to achieving growth. they should not associate the european union with canny pension, but right now that is the message. >> letta's message is that it was up t

. >>> the eu is investigating app apple for accusations it is unfairly paying less taxes. >> announcer: you're watching "worldwide exchange," business news from around the globe. >>> on today's show, a completely new concept allowing companies to raise income from their own savings. that's where entrepreneur mark hudson claims oxygen finance can do. >>> google's eric schmidt continues to defend google's paying taxes. >>> leaders from middle east and north africa have been gathering in jordan for the world economic for ym. we hear from the ceo about the challenges of security issues. >>> also coming up, we will visit bangkok. its capital is taking the top spot to london. that's right. we will be joined for more at 11:40 cet. >>> minutes from the bank of japan's april meeting think the central bank should consider measures to prevent a drop in liquidity from the japanese drop in bond markets. the bank's targets as hardly reached by march 2016. here is a look at how the japanese market down another 2% to 3%. this is compounding some of the volatile trade seen as of the close. 469 points l

whether that is within a nato framework or a eu framework i don't care. of 21 nations are members both organizations. and obviously we owe it to our taxpayers to make sure that the work we do is done efficiently. we have one set of taxpayers. we have one set up military capabilities. we need more investment in transports capability. we have a lot of soldiers in europe, but we can't move them. air-to-air-two air -- air refueling. we need better capacity when it comes to surveillance, reconnaissance, and, to speak in very concrete terms about that, that is to invest in drones that can be used together in such information and guide our military and lyrical decisions. -- and political decisions. these are critical shortfalls. at the natoed, summit in chicago last year, european nato allies committed themselves to invest in the air- -to-rica capabilities -- air air refueling capabilities. i don't care about institutions. i care about the work to be done. now, this is why i do agree that the most important thing to decide at the european council would be toecem

. >> richard howitt, british member of the european parliament and eu elections observer in pakistan. thank you. pope francis has canonized more than 800 saints in a ceremony at the vatican. the majority of them were 15th century martyrs killed for refusing to convert to islam. it has been a controversy look move -- move. >> a record-breaking celebration, but not everyone is impressed. on sunday, pope francis canonized more than 800 catholics, the highest number of saints made it once in the history of the catholic church. two of them were women known for their charitable work. the rest were hundreds of lehman from the southern from theown -- laymen