Germany's government said Wednesday that it expects the country's economy to shrink by 0.4% this year, joining a string of other forecasters in revising sharply downward its outlook for Europe's biggest economy, the Associated Press reported. The revised forecast contrasted with the 0.4% growth that the government predicted in late April.

Countries like Saudi Arabia, Norway and Chile have long used sovereign-wealth funds to sock away windfall profits from periods of high prices for commodity exports like oil and metals for future years when their own production winds down or international prices plunge, the Wall Street Journal reported. Ireland on Tuesday created its own rainy-day fund thanks to outsize profits from an unusual and controversial source of income: U.S. technology and pharmaceutical giants seeking to lower their tax bills.

Metro Bank, an upstart British lender, said on Sunday that it has raised 325 million pounds, or $395 million, in new capital to help ease regulators’ worries about its financial health, the New York Times reported. The deal, put together after days of negotiations, is meant to help stabilize what was one of the first of Britain’s so-called challenger banks, created to take on incumbents like HSBC and Barclays. Founded in 2010 by an American banking veteran, Vernon Hill, Metro was the first new mainstream bank in Britain in over a century.

A sharp rise in Irish business insolvencies is being linked to ongoing inflation pressures faced by businesses in all sectors, the Irish Examiner reported. Data from CRIFVision-Net for the third quarter shows the number of companies becoming insolvent rose by 54% compared to the same period last year. A total of 185 insolvencies were recorded in July, August, and September, versus 120 in the third quarter of 2022. Ireland’s economy has remained relatively strong this year despite cost-of-living challenges and a mixed global outlook.

A cash-strapped council in the United Kingdom has cancelled its Christmas lights in a battle against bankruptcy, YahooFinance.com reported. Medway Council in Kent announced on Monday that there will be no lights or switch-on events in five of its towns. The decision comes just weeks after a financial report warned it is "very likely" the council will face bankruptcy. It said the move to call off Christmas in Gillingham, Rochester, Strood, Rainham and Chatham will save the council £75,000.

In July this year, Nuremberg’s mayor celebrated the final beam being placed atop the redeveloped Quelle building, a monumental 1950s symbol of postwar Germany’s economic revival. Revamped with offices, shops and homes, a big part of the giant complex was slated to open in 2024, Bloomberg News reported. In recent weeks, however, the site’s developer Gerch Group, which has €4 billion ($4.2 billion) of projects under construction, has filed for insolvency proceedings, along with one of its project companies linked to the development. The opening date’s now in doubt.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy met with European leaders to press for continued support against Russia’s invasion, amid concerns about the continued flow of U.S. aid, Bloomberg News reported. Zelenskiy kept fellow-leaders guessing about whether he would attend until the eve of a summit in Granada, Spain, because he sought concrete results from a trip, according to people familiar with his thinking. It was not clear to him whether allies were ready to deliver on concrete pledges, added the people who asked not to be named on a confidential issue.

Scandinavian airline SAS said on Tuesday that U.S. investment firm Castlelake and Air France-KLM would become new major shareholders in the airline alongside the Danish state following bankruptcy proceedings, Reuters reported. Castlelake will take a stake of about 32%, Air France-KLM's will be around 20% and the Danish state will hold about 26%, SAS said. Scandinavia's biggest carrier filed for bankruptcy protection in the United States in mid-2022 after years of struggling with high costs coupled with low customer demand brought on by the pandemic.

A Swiss court is weighing whether to grant Credit Suisse investors access to more documents on a CHF16 billion ($17.6 billion) writedown of the bank’s bonds, a move the lender has opposed, filings seen by Reuters show. Hundreds of bondholders have sued Swiss regulator FINMA in an effort to recoup their losses from the writedown that helped pave the way for Credit Suisse’s government-orchestrated takeover by UBS in March. In the battle for disclosure, investors scored an early win in May when the St.

Demire Deutsche Mittelstand Real Estate AG and its creditors are gearing up for debt refinancing talks as the Apollo-backed landlord faces a looming bond maturity amid an industry downturn, Bloomberg News. Demire has hired Rothschild & Co. to advise on its refinancing, according to people familiar with the matter who asked not to be named because the information is private. Bondholders have also been hearing pitches from potential advisors.