The British government outlined the central argument on Monday it hopes will persuade voters to stay in the European Union, publishing a detailed economic analysis finding that Britons will be poorer if they quit, the International New York Times reported. The release of the publication by the Treasury, complete with complex algebraic calculations, is an important moment before a referendum, to take place June 23, on whether Britain should end more than four decades of integration and quit the 28-nation bloc.

The number of British manufacturers who are struggling financially has risen by 20%, with food and drinks companies hardest hit – despite the weak pound making UK exports cheaper abroad, The Guardian reported. Data from the insolvency firm Begbies Traynor showed that 21,061 UK manufacturers, many of which rely heavily on exporting, ended the first quarter of this year in a state of significant financial distress – 20% more than a year ago.

Finance ministers and central bankers from the Group of 20 largest economies sent a warning Friday to tax havens hiding billions of dollars in potential revenue critical to domestic growth plans around the world, The Wall Street Journal reported. G-20 finance officials called on the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development to report by July countries and jurisdictions that haven’t signed up to new international standards on tax transparency and information sharing.

Greece’s creditors are considering seeking extra austerity measures that would be triggered if Athens misses its fiscal targets, in a bid to bridge differences between Europe and the International Monetary Fund and break a deadlock threatening to unravel the Greek bailout, The Wall Street Journal reported. Under the proposal, say officials involved in the discussions, Greece would have to sign up to so-called contingency measures of up to about €3 billion, on top of the package of about €5 billion in tax increases and spending cuts Greece and its lenders are already negotiating.

Royal Bank of Scotland is to close 32 of its NatWest branches and cut 600 jobs in the bailed-out bank’s latest attempt to save costs and respond to customers’ increased use of digital banking, The Guardian reported. The job cuts will be in clerical roles at the bank, which is 73% owned by the taxpayer, including 200 posts in the London area and 400 across the north and the Midlands. The Unite union said it intended to fight any move towards compulsory redundancies by the bank, which was bailed out with £45bn of taxpayer money in 2008 and 2009.

The Bank of England issued its clearest warning yet that a British exit from the European Union would probably hurt the economy and cause sterling to slide, angering pro-Brexit campaigners. The warning comes two days after the International Monetary Fund said the world economy would suffer if Britain voted in its referendum on June 23 to leave the EU. "Such a vote might result in an extended period of uncertainty about the economic outlook, including about the prospects for export growth," the BoE said. "This uncertainty would be likely to push down on demand in the short run ...

German prosecutors said on Thursday they would press criminal charges against the family behind drugstore chain Schlecker, which folded four years ago, Reuters reported. The chain's founder, 71-year-old Anton Schlecker, is accused of having siphoned assets from the company on 36 occasions while in full knowledge of its looming bankruptcy, according to the prosecutors' office in the city of Stuttgart. It did not provide a figure on the sums involved, but a spokesman for the prosecutors said several million euros had been illegally diverted from funds available to repay creditors.

It is the most bitter industrial relations dispute Ireland has seen for many years. For the past few weeks, a series of two-day strikes on the Dublin tram system, known as Luas, has left 90,000 commuters walking to work. And there may be worse to come, the Financial Times reported. After an uncompromising exchange this week between Transdev, the French transport company that operates Luas, and the Siptu trade union that represents tram drivers, an all-out strike now threatens to shut the service indefinitely.

Greek home appliance retailer Electroniki shut down its 45 outlets nationwide on Thursday after a court ruled it was bankrupt, becoming the latest casualty of the country's economic slump, Reuters reported. Greek retailers have been hit hard after six years of economic recession, and austerity in return for international bailouts, which have wiped out nearly a third of household disposable income.

French President François Hollande’s government said Wednesday it will ramp up austerity measures in the next two years to stay on track with budget targets, despite a looming presidential election, The Wall Street Journal reported. The French finance ministry said it would find an additional €3.8 billion ($4.31 billion) of savings this year and another €5 billion in 2017 to ensure France meets its pledge of getting the budget deficit under the European limit of 3% of economic output. The belt-tightening indicates Mr.