Tata steelworkers in the UK have voted to accept the closure of their £15bn pension fund, a historic sacrifice that brings the industry closer to resolving the crisis in British steel, the Financial Times reported. Thousands of trade union members backed a rescue package that Tata Steel offered its British operation, whose future came under threat after the Indian group threatened to quit the country last March. A key condition of the plan — aimed at saving thousands of jobs and maintaining production — was shutting the British Steel Pension Scheme to further contributions.

Greece's talks with its official lenders on concluding a crucial bailout review have made progress, but more steps are needed to wrap it up, European Commissioner for Economic and Financial Affairs Pierre Moscovici said on Wednesday.

The euro-area economy expanded less than initially reported in the fourth quarter as growth in three of its largest economies fell short of expectations and Greek output unexpectedly shrank, Bloomberg News reported. Gross domestic product rose 0.4 percent in the three months through December, the European Union’s statistics office in Luxembourg said on Tuesday. That is below a Jan. 31 estimate and follows an increase of 0.4 percent in the previous quarter. The data highlight the fragility of the 19-nation economy’s recovery.

Italy is looking at a €5bn state rescue of two struggling regional banks as the eurozone’s third-largest economy takes renewed steps to shore up its troubled banking system, the Financial Times reported. The rescues of Veneto Banca and Banca Popolare di Vicenza, which still require regulatory approval, would be a “precautionary recapitalisation”, according to people with direct knowledge of the discussions. This is a mechanism that allows eurozone states to pump state money into banks without infringing state aid rules.

Greece and its international lenders are not expected to reach agreement on the country's bailout progress before a meeting of euro zone finance ministers next Monday, Eurogroup President Jeroen Dijsselbloem said on Tuesday. Talks between Athens, its European Union lenders and the International Monetary Fund over labour and energy reforms, fiscal targets and debt relief have dragged on for months rekindling fears of a new crisis in the single-currency bloc, the International New York Times reported on a Reuters story.

Spain’s highest criminal court has launched a probe against the former heads of the central bank and the stock market regulator, declaring them formal suspects over their failure to stop the ill-fated flotation of Bankia, the Financial Times reported. The bailout and nationalisation of Bankia marked the nadir of Spain’s 2012 financial crisis and forced the government to request financial aid from its EU partners. The sprawling savings bank went on to absorb more than €20bn in state support and posted the biggest loss in Spanish corporate history.

After a few days of relative calm for Greece’ two-year bond, the country’s short-term debt has sold off sharply again in the last few hours as Athens’ central bank chief has made series of stark warnings about the economic consequences of the country’s latest bailout impasse, the Financial Times reported. The yield on a bond maturing in April 2019 has now leapt over 35 basis points to 8.8 per cent but remains below an eight-month high of close to 10 per cent hit last week.

Germany on Monday voiced support for Greece to stay in the euro zone and the European Commission dispatched a senior official to Athens to persuade it to take on further reforms to salvage its bailout accord, the International New York Times reported on a Reuters story. International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde, meanwhile, remained firm that as a lender the IMF could not cut any special deals for the crisis-hit country, which has received three bailouts since 2010.

A welcome dose of good news for the Italian economy. Annual industrial production in the eurozone’s third largest economy accelerated at its best pace since 2010, raising hopes of an uptick in economic growth for a country beset by a host of political and banking woes in recent months, the Financial Times reported. Overall output rose 1.6 per cent in 2016 – the best annual performance in six years. Industrial production accounts for just under a third of Italian GDP.

France isn’t Greece. But as investors worry about the impending presidential election, French bonds have shifted from trading like haven German bunds to be treated more like troubled Italian debt, The Wall Street Journal reported. The reassessment of France—from part of the eurozone’s financial core toward its periphery—shows the heightened concern about far-right National Front leader Marine Le Pen winning the presidency. The effects on trading were visible even as fears about France receded this week.