BERLIN, May 15 (Reuters) – France’s new president, Francois
Hollande, looked understandably nervous on Tuesday at his first
meeting with Angela Merkel, as the world looked for signs that
Europe’s new power duo can overcome political differences to
resolve the euro crisis.

The German chancellor tactfully guided her guest through the
military honours in Berlin and whisked him off for talks that
had been ominously delayed when lightning struck his plane.

BERLIN (Reuters) – New French President Francois Hollande and German Chancellor Angela Merkel acknowledged differences on Tuesday over how to boost growth in recession-plagued Europe, but pledged to work together on a joint approach in time for a summit next month.

Hollande jetted to Berlin hours after his inauguration to meet Merkel for the first time, but arrived over an hour late after his plane was hit by lightning and he was forced to return briefly to Paris.

ATHENS/BERLIN (Reuters) – Attempts to form a government in Greece collapsed on Tuesday, jolting financial markets at the prospect that leftists opposed to the terms of an EU bailout could sweep to victory in a June election and tip the euro zone deeper into crisis.

The turmoil in Athens sent shock waves around other troubled members of the 17-nation European single currency area. The euro slipped below $1.28, world stocks slid and Spanish and Italian bond yields rose above the danger level of 6 percent as investors scurried for shelter in safe haven German Bunds.

BERLIN, May 15 (Reuters) – Germany’s centre-left opposition
told Angela Merkel it would only support her fiscal pact if it
was accompanied by measures to boost growth and jobs, siding
with France’s new Socialist President Francois Hollande hours
ahead of his visit to Berlin.

Markets and policymakers are watching the dialogue between
Germany’s conservative chancellor and the new French leader for
signs that they can overcome their differences on Merkel’s drive
for austerity.

BERLIN, May 14 (Reuters) – Her rivals call her Germany’s
“debt queen”, but Hannelore Kraft’s victory in a state election
at the weekend has driven speculation she could challenge
Chancellor Angela Merkel as the mother of a nation famed for its
frugality.

Kraft’s ready smile and common touch helped her turn around
the fortunes of her Social Democrats (SPD) in the May 13 vote in
North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and she was re-elected premier of
Germany’s most populous state.

BERLIN, May 14 (Reuters) – Angela Merkel is looking
increasingly isolated at home and in Europe after what she
called a “bitter, painful defeat” for her party in a weekend
election in Germany’s most populous state.

The German chancellor said the vote did not change her view
that fiscal rigour was the best path for Europe, although it
highlighted resistance among Germans to enduring the kind of
austerity she has forced on debt-laden southern nations.

DUESSELDORF, Germany (Reuters) – Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives suffered a crushing defeat on Sunday in an election in Germany’s most populous state, a result which could embolden the left opposition to step up attacks on her European austerity policies.

The election in North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW), a western German state with a bigger population than the Netherlands and an economy the size of Turkey, was held 18 months before a national vote in which Merkel will be fighting for a third term.

DUESSELDORF, Germany (Reuters) – Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives suffered a crushing defeat on Sunday in an election in Germany’s most populous state, a result which could embolden the left opposition to step up its criticism of her European austerity policies.

The election in North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW), a western German state with a bigger population than the Netherlands and an economy the size of Turkey, was held 18 months before a national election in which Merkel is expected to fight for a third term.

DUESSELDORF, Germany (Reuters) – Voting began on Sunday in Germany’s most populous state where Angela Merkel’s conservatives face a defeat that could give the left momentum before next year’s federal election and fuel criticism of the chancellor’s European austerity drive.

North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW), an industrial state in western Germany with an economy and population roughly the size of the Netherlands, has a history of influencing national politics.

BERLIN (Reuters) – Germany told Greece on Friday that staying in the euro zone was its own choice and that it must not stray from austerity if it expects to get international cash.

It also laid out its support for a European ‘growth pact’ in an attempt to deflect criticism that its insistence on austerity has exacerbated Athens’ debt woes.