15 June - Athens, Greece, Protests

Thousands of holidaymakers affected as 2,000 taxi drivers block Piraeus and Patras ports, Athens airport and tourist sites

Eurozone finance ministers came up short of a final deal to get Greece its next installment of bailout money needed to prevent a default that could cause financial chaos. Employees at Greece's main power utility began 48-hour rolling strikes to protest austerity plans.

Greece is preparing to sell off billions of dollars worth of state assets including airports, highways, state-owned companies as well as banks, real estate and gaming licenses to meet international lenders' demands that it raise funds.

Stocks opened lower Monday after the euro zone ministers put off the decision for a new aid package for Greece and a possible downgrade of Italy's credit rating rekindled worries over the continuing debt crisis.

With Greece on the precipice of default, euro-zone leaders have delayed the release of a critical tranche of aid. But the failure to agree on how to tackle the Greece crisis threatens both EU credibility and the monetary union, German dailies warn on Monday.

European finance ministers meeting in Luxembourg moved toward approving a fresh quarterly installment of Greece's bailout loan, but they remained divided over the details of a far harder task—extending Greece a giant new package.

The area in the centre of the Greek capital is playing host to thousands of angry demonstrators

European governments weighed withholding half of Greece’s next 12 billion-euro ($17.2 billion) aid payment, seeking to keep the country solvent while maintaining pressure on the government to slash the debt that pitched the euro area into crisis.

A robust rescue package for Greece suddenly seemed a reality on Friday after Germany caved in to France and the European Central Bank

Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou called on Sunday for a fall referendum on