A new view in Europe?

January 06, 2015 - Daily News Briefing

The euro was designed to forge a tighter European economic union. That idea may be losing support.

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Boko Haram Islamic extremists have seized the headquarters of a multinational military force near Nigeria's border with Chad, just days after foreign troops abandoned the base, according to a community leader and residents who took to canoes to escape. Following Saturday's action in Baga, Nigerian troops on Monday began evacuating their families from the nearby town of Monguno, creating a panic and causing civilians to flee, according to Hussain Monguno, an official of the Borno-Yobe People's Forum.

In addition to some snow and heavy rain, bitterly cold temperatures have begun moving into parts of the US and will be staying put for at least part of this week. The Midwest will see the tail end of a storm that could leave as many as 6 inches of snow in Chicago by early Tuesday. After that, Arctic temperatures like those seen in North Dakota and Minnesota will rush in. It'll be a similar story in New York, where rain showers will give way to cold air. By Thursday, "New York City will be lucky if it hits 20 degrees for a high and could see lows near 10 degrees," according to Michael Musher with the National Weather Service's Weather Prediction Center.

Highlighting the depth of Indonesia's air safety problems, the transportation ministry announced harsh measures Monday against everyone who allowed AirAsia Flight 8501 to take off without proper permits – including the suspension of the airport's operator and officials in the control tower. The routing permits of all airlines flying in the country also will be examined to see if they are violating the rules, said Djoko Murjatmodjo, acting director general of air transportation. The crackdown comes as searchers continue to fight bad weather while combing the Java Sea for bodies and wreckage of the Airbus A320 that crashed Dec. 28, killing all 162 passengers and crew on board.

Fiat Chrysler, Nissan and Honda reported US sales gains in December, helping to push both Japanese automakers to record numbers for 2014. The figures are signs that car and truck sales finished the year strongly. For all of 2014, analysts are predicting sales of 16.5 million vehicles, up 6 percent from last year and a return to pre-recession levels. Fiat Chrysler was led by the Ram pickup truck, with sales up 24 percent for the year.

The euro hit a nearly nine-year low versus the dollar on Monday as investors bet on quantitative easing by the European Central Bank while soft manufacturing surveys pushed down shares and sent oil prices to 5-1/2 year lows. European shares are expected to dip, with Britain's FTSE seen falling by up to 0.4 percent. Germany's DAX andFrance's CAC are both seen falling as much as 0.2 percent. The euro fell to as low as $1.18605, its weakest level since March 2006, having fallen below an important support at $1.20. The common currency last traded at $1.1926, down 0.6 percent from late US trade on Friday.

An ultraconservative tea partyer who's been an outspoken critic of House Speaker John Boehner says he'll challenge Boehner for the job when the new Congress convenes Tuesday. Republican Rep. Louie Gohmert of Texas says voters made clear in the November election that they want change. Republicans unseated Democrats as the majority party in the Senate and increased their advantage in the House. Boehner still is expected to win despite opposition from some Republicans who refused to back the Ohio lawmaker in 2013.

“The object of the Monitor is to injure no man, but to bless all mankind.” – Mary Baker Eddy

The Daily News Briefing is published Monday through Friday by The Christian Science Publishing Society in Boston, Massachusetts.

To send a comment to the Editor, email editor@csmonitor.com.

“The object of the Monitor is to injure no man, but to bless all mankind.” – Mary Baker Eddy

The Daily News Briefing is published Monday through Friday by The Christian Science Publishing Society in Boston, Massachusetts.

To send a comment to the Editor, email editor@csmonitor.com.

Subscribe Now to read this post!

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