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Is Germany still the champion?

By Philip Blenkinsop BRUSSELS (Reuters) – A week on from its World Cup soccer victory, Germany may return to center stage, though this time not with fan celebrations but concerns over the health of Europe's economic motor. “We've seen a delayed impact of China and the Ukraine crisis,” said ING economist Carsten Brzeski. The Ukraine/Russia issue was already there.” In a week relatively light on U.S. indicators, economists are looking for further signs that Europe's recovery and even German growth may be stalling, putting more pressure on the European Central Bank to act. Across the Channel, minutes from the Bank of England may be the last to show unanimous backing for a stable bank rate of 0.5 percent.

New business strategy from TransCanada

After years of fighting with the United States government and environmentalists, the TransCanada is now looking at sending crude oil from Alberta …

Buffett defends Coke, BNSF at Berkshire annual meeting

By Luciana Lopez OMAHA, Nebraska (Reuters) – Warren Buffett on Saturday defended his recent controversial vote on executive pay at Coca-Cola Co and disappointing performance at railroad BNSF as investors grilled him on his Berkshire Hathaway Inc conglomerate at its annual shareholder meeting. The investment guru was peppered with questions at the meeting, part of a mostly festive weekend that Buffett calls “Woodstock for Capitalists,” following concerns that Berkshire last year missed Buffett's five-year growth target for the first time in his 49 years at the helm. Buffett, 83, and his partner and company Vice Chairman Charlie Munger, 90, faced off with the audience and a hand-picked panel often excusing recent worries at the sprawling conglomerate. “Over any cycle we will over-perform, but there's no guarantee on that,” he said, saying that Berkshire is designed to perform best when markets are at their worst – unlike last year's 30 percent jump in the S&P 500.