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The Justice Department charged Switzerland's oldest bank Thursday with helping American taxpayers hide more than $1.2 billion from the Internal Revenue Service. The case marks the first time an overseas bank has been charged in the U.S. for aiding tax evasion.

Exclusive: Spain's economy minister Luis de Guindos shares the details of a reform package that could help get the country's economy back on track, but it will not go over well with many workers.

Whoever said that the world can be a scary place sure wasn't kidding. Consider a few of the frighteningly noteworthy events of the past year: Europe's economy slipped into a debt-induced coma; the euro went from being a potential global store of value to a currency on the brink of extinction; and growth in overheated markets like China and Brazil started to slow, prompting a nosedive in their equity prices.

Facebook has finally filed for an IPO, but it likely won't start trading for months. For those who can't wait to gamble on the stock market, bookies are accepting bets.

After wreaking havoc in global financial markets last year, the debt crisis in Europe has entered a complicated new phase in 2012.

Chrysler Group reported its first annual profit since 2005 Wednesday, capping a comeback a little more than two years after a federal bailout, a bankruptcy filing and a takeover by Italian automaker Fiat.

The Chinese government said Wednesday that manufacturing in the world's second-largest economy expanded slightly in January, while a report from a leading bank indicated contraction in the sector for the third straight month.

The parent company of the New York Stock Exchange said Wednesday that it plans to end its proposed merger with the parent of the Frankfurt exchange, after European officials blocked the deal.

The deteriorating situation in Iraq is leading some analysts to worry that the country may not be able to meet its lofty goals for rapidly ramping up oil production.

Exxon reported a 2% rise in fourth-quarter earnings Tuesday, even as oil and gas production fell.

A coalition of labor and trade activists joined Democratic lawmakers from industrial states Tuesday to push the Obama administration to take action against the growing imports of auto parts from China.

European Union leaders agreed to strengthen a financial firewall and most members of the 27-nation group will sign a new fiscal compact. But the first summit of the year ended without new solutions for the debt crisis in Greece.

Carnival Corp. lowered its 2012 forecast on Monday to reflect the fatal accident of a cruise ship off the coast of Italy earlier this month, as well as the rising cost of fuel. (see correction below)

Maybe the euro isn't doomed after all?

World markets were under pressure Monday, dragged down by uncertainty in Europe, where leaders have failed to agree on a solution for the Greek debt crisis.

Fitch downgraded the sovereign debt ratings Friday of five European countries, with Italy and Spain taking the biggest hit.

Given the troubles in the eurozone, it's little wonder that the number of executives in Greece and Italy seeking jobs elsewhere in the world is rising. According to the Cyprus-based firm One Hour Translation, the volume of résumés it translated from Greece and Italy rose sharply last year -- by 29% and 54%, respectively. The majority of the job applicants wanted their résumés translated into English or German, presumably because that's where the high-paying jobs are. The question is, If these job aspirants have such lousy language skills that they need their résumés translated, how do they hope to get through an interview, let alone work in these other countries?

Portugal has come under heavy pressure in the bond market this week as investors fear the nation could be the next domino to fall in the eurozone debt crisis.

Okay, we get it. Mitt Romney is uber-rich.

Over the last few months Western governments have been tightening the economic noose around Iran.