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Are you tough enough to be one of the 22 million Americans who run a small business? Can you or your employees afford to go without health care coverage? Will you work six or seven days a week and give up your holidays? Will you consistently work more than 8 hours a day? Can you do what it takes to keep a customer happy? Are your business and your mind wired for a new digital age? These are some of the characteristic features of many American entrepreneurs identified by the Discover® Small Business WatchSM in a year’s worth of polling the nation’s small business owners who have five or fewer employees.

A new Financial Times/Harris Poll examines public opinion in the five largest European countries, Britain, France, Italy, Spain and Germany, on issues related to the so-called “reform treaty” that would re-shape the institutions of the European Union. The treaty, if adopted, would change voting procedures, expand the role of both the European Parliament and national legislatures, and include a charter of fundamental rights. EU leaders, meeting in Lisbon on October 18, endorsed the proposed new treaty.

In 2006, the government deficit of both the euro area (EA13) and the EU27 fell compared to 2005, while the government debt increased in absolute terms. In the euro area the government deficit decreased from 2.5% of GDP in 2005 to 1.5% in 2006, and in the EU27 it fell from 2.4% to 1.6%. In the euro area the government debt to GDP ratio fell from 70.3% at the end of 2005 to 68.6% at the end of 2006, and in the EU27 from 62.7% to 61.4%.

The first bank run in the UK for 140 years may result in a review of the UK's tripartite regulatory structure, Fitch Ratings, the international rating agency, says in a special report. The Northern Rock case is the first big test of the UK's tripartite regulatory framework, and one immediate outcome has been a swift revision of the retail deposit insurance arrangements. The UK banking system's strengths include a high-quality accounting and disclosure regime, good insolvency arrangements, efficient payment and settlement systems and flexible labour laws. Fitch assigns the highest Banking System Indicator score of 'A' to the UK banking system.

Venture capitalists invested $7.1 billion in 887 deals in the third quarter of 2007 according to the MoneyTree(TM) Report from PricewaterhouseCoopers and the National Venture Capital Association based on data provided by Thomson Financial. Quarterly investment activity was down slightly from the second quarter of 2007 when $7.2 billion was invested in 1,000 deals, suggesting ongoing stability within the venture capital arena. The quarter saw notable increases in both the Clean Tech and Internet specific sectors as well as ongoing strength in first rounds of venture capital financing.

The popularity of hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) is increasing dramatically across all the countries in the world and the United Kingdom is listed as one of the top five global hybrid electric vehicle markets. At present, the developed countries are keen on promoting HEVs, while the developing countries are unable to enforce the usage of them. Increasing demand of gas, price rise and environmental concerns are driving a market that is in need of alternative solutions.

Employees do not believe their organizations or their senior management are doing enough to help them become fully engaged and contribute to their companies’ success, according to a new global workforce study conducted by Towers Perrin, a global professional services firm.

Passenger cars are fast becoming a necessity in China, with the country’s high gross domestic product (GDP) rates encouraging people to invest in the market. The Government has also taken active steps such as lowering the tariff on imported cars to propel the Chinese passenger car market.

UEAPME, the European craft and SME employers' organisation, congratulated the Portuguese Presidency of the EU and warmly welcomed the agreement on the "Reform Treaty" reached by the EU leaders at the Lisbon summit overnight.

Venture capitalists continued to put more money to work with entrepreneurial companies, as overall U.S. venture capital investment climbed 8% in the third quarter of 2007 compared to the same period last year to reach $8.07 billion, according to the Quarterly Venture Capital Report released by Dow Jones VentureOne and Ernst & Young LLP.