WASHINGTON, Oct 5, 2008 (AFP) - Troubled lender Wachovia Corp. appeared determined Sunday to plow ahead with a planned union with Wells Fargo & Co., despite an order from a New York State Supreme Court in favor of jilted suitor Citigroup.

BERLIN, Oct 6, 2008 (AFP) - With Germany making a blanket guarantee to cover all of the country's savings, other European countries were under increased pressure on Monday to bolster their financial defences.

WASHINGTON, Oct 5, 2008 (AFP) - Barack Obama and John McCain both have declared war on lobbyists, but with tighter regulation of the financial sector ahead, the dark arts of the profession are in demand, experts say.

TOKYO, Oct 6, 2008 (AFP) - Japan's central bank said it injected 1.0 trillion yen (9.5 billion dollars) into the short-term money market on Monday to try to ease strains on the financial system.

LONDON, Oct 6, 2008 (AFP) - Having himself suffered a total breakdown at the office, former corporate finance specialist Jonathan Naess is well-qualified to run a charity helping stressed-out workers in London's City district.

BRUSSELS, Oct 6, 2008 (AFP) - BNP Paribas announced Sunday that it is taking control of ailing finance group Fortis's operations in Belgium and Luxembourg, in a deal which will make Belgium the largest shareholder in the French bank.

FRANKFURT, Oct 6, 2008 (AFP) - The fourth biggest German bank, Hypo Real Estate (HRE), hailed Monday a public-private rescue plan which it said would allow it to keep functioning amidst the ongoing financial crisis.

'We are very thankful for the backing of all those involved,' HRE boss Georg Funke said in a statement.

MEXICO CITY, Oct 5, 2008 (AFP) - South of the US border, Mexicans are already feeling the squeeze from the US financial crisis, as unemployed migrant workers return home and remittances drop at a record rate.

WASHINGTON, Oct 5, 2008 (AFP) - A US appeals court has struck down an earlier injunction order on a proposed merger between banks Wells Fargo & Co and Wachovia, Wells Fargo announced in a statement late Sunday.

MOSCOW, Oct 6, 2008 (AFP) - Stock prices on Russia's two main markets, the RTS and MICEX, plunged at the start of trading Monday after similar falls in Asia on concerns about the global financial crisis.