The following are the top stories in the Maltese and overseas press:
The Times reports how a couple ended up almost penniless because of the works on the Dock 1 area in Cospicua when their bar was closed. They even had to sell their jewellery and car.
The Malta Independent reports that a €3.5m sports complex was inaugurated in Kirkop yesterday. It also says that people are under-reporting prevalence of obesity.
In-Nazzjon also leads with the opening of the Kirkop sports complex. It also says that 3,000 are working in the cultural sector.
l-orizzont follows up its story about a man who had his wheelchair stolen and says the case is in the hands of the Community Chest Fund. It also says that a Sicilian man committed suicide after losing his job in Malta. He was unable to find a job in Italy.
The overseas press
The euro crisis has spread to Spain as Greece swore in a crisis government and British Prime Minister David Cameron called for decisive action on the uncertainty. The uncertainty pushed shares and the euro down sharply. Markets in Paris, Frankfurt and London all closed down more than one per cent, and the euro hit fresh four-month lows against the US dollar.
Spain was officially declared to be in recession, and is desperately trying to shore up a crippled banking system amid concerns it may need outside help to do so. El Pais says Moody's has cut the debt ratings of 16 Spanish banks by one to three notches, citing the ongoing recession and the reduced credit-worthiness of the Spanish government.
Sky News says that in a speech in Manchester, David Cameron called on eurozone leaders to either back the group's weaker economies or kick them out altogether. “Either Europe has a committed, stable, successful eurozone ... or we are in unchartered territory which carries huge risks for everybody,” he said.
Kathimerini says that the prospect of another inconclusive election, and of Greece's subsequent exit from the eurozone, prompted Fitch Ratings to cut Greece to a “CCC” rating, making it vulnerable to default. Meanwhile, the IMF announced on Thursday it would hold off on official contacts with Greece until after the June 17 elections, which effectively delays a review upon which the next disbursement of €1.6 billion depends.
La Tribune reports that French President François Hollande’s new Socialist-led government has taken a 30 per cent pay cut. The new Finance Minister Pierre Moscovici reduced hopes in some other European capitals that Mr Hollande would drop his demand for a renegotiation of a hard-won European treaty on trimming budgets. He said after taking control of the finance ministry: “The treaty will not be ratified as is. It must be added to, completed with a growth amendment.” Moscovici said on television: “A country that is indebted is a country that grows poorer.”
Le Parisien says Hollande and the leaders of Germany, Britain, Italy and the European Union held a conference call today to discuss Europe’s economic strategy ahead of the Group of Eight summit in the United States. AFP reports that they have agreed that both budget consolidation and growth are necessary to tackle the eurozone crisis.
Economic Times quotes Fitch saying the world's 29 biggest banks would need to raise $556 billion (€437.5 billion) by the end of 2018 in order to meet new cash reserve requirements. The agency referred to all 29 banks as "systematically important financial institutions".
Los Angeles Times says that the social networking company Facebook has priced its initial share offer at $38 (€30) per share. That means it is estimated to be worth more than $100 billion. Shares are expected to soar when trading begins in New York on Friday but some analysts are questioning the country’s valuation.
The Washington Times reports that for the first time in the United States, the number of non-white babies being born outnumbers the number of white babies. New census figures show that Hispanics, blacks, Asians and other minorities accounted for 50.4 per cent of births in the 12 months to July 2011. That compares to just 37 per cent in 1990 and 49.5 per cent in April 2010. Social scientists say the change reflects a wave of immigration in recent decades.
The war crimes trial of ex-Bosnian Serb commander Ratko Mladic has been postponed because prosecutors failed to disclose some evidence to the defence. Hague News says about 7,000 pages of evidence, which should have been passed to Mladic's lawyers, were not handed over. The defence has asked for six months to process that material. Ratko Mladic is facing 11 charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity over the 1992-1995 Bosnian conflict. He denies all of them.
MTV says the music industry has been paying tribute to the American pop star Donna Summer, who has died at the age of 63 from cancer she believed she contacted from dust of the twin towers’ destruction during 9/11. Dolly Parton, Kylie Minogue Sir Elton John and Mary J Blige wwere among those to have paid tribute. The country music star Dolly Parton called Donna Summer “the disco queen” and the producer Quincy Jones said her voice was the heartbeat of soundtrack of a decade. Minogue described her as "one of my earliest musical inspirations", while Dionne Warwick said she was sad to lose a great performer and "dear friend".
The Irish Enquirer reports that the Irish Minister for Social Protection, Joan Burton has confirmed that birth certificates would soon have to include the identity of the father. Minister Burton says she planned to implement the recommendation of the Law Reform Commission in relation to civil registration and to start that process by the end of the year. It is hoped compulsory joint registration of birth would facilitate requiring a father to take responsibility for the maintenance of the child and related rights in respect of guardianship