Dozens of U.S. cities and towns are being bruised by the deepening Greek debt crisis, even though they are thousands of miles away and don't own any of the country's bonds.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, after weeks of brinksmanship over Greece, gave ground, improving the chances that the struggling country will avoid a messy debt default this year that could threaten the stability of the euro currency area.

The U.S. index of leading economic indicators rebounded in May, but consumer sentiment levels fell as of the middle of June, according to two data reports.

As higher gasoline prices weigh on consumer confidence, they also are spurring cost-cutting maneuvers by people for whom driving less often isn't an option, from piano tuners to home-health-care providers.

Moody's placed Italy on notice, warning that its sovereign rating may be imperiled by a weak economy and rising interest rates.

The price of a corn bushel is outpacing futures prices in some parts of the U.S., a rare phenomenon that underscores worries about a lack of the grain used to feed livestock and poultry.

The International Monetary Fund slightly lowered its estimate for global growth for this year to 4.3%, and said Europe's debt crisis and unexpectedly weak growth in the U.S. pose greater dangers to the global recovery than originally forecast.

Greece's embattled Socialist government announced a sweeping cabinet reshuffle, replacing the country's finance minister in an effort to shore up support for unpopular economic reforms.

The President's Jobs Council—staffed by some of the top executives in U.S. business—hoped to sound the bugle charge when it published its interim recommendations for fixing unemployment. Instead, it hit less glorious notes.

Food prices will be up to 30% higher on average over the next decade as slowing grains production fails to keep pace with rising demand, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development said.

Mexican central banker Agustín Carstens, campaigning in Beijing for the top IMF job, said the World Bank should be involved in a rescue package for Greece as a way to ease the cost of the bailout.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy urged European leaders to find a compromise on Greece's debt crisis in order to stabilize the euro.

The euro zone's trade balance swung into deficit in April after exports fell more sharply than imports from March, the European Union's statistics agency reported.

Italy's government has asked Lorenzo Bini Smaghi, Italian member of the European Central Bank's executive board, to step down nearly two years before his term ends in order to facilitate the ascension of countryman Mario Draghi as the bank's president.

Claims filed by unemployed Americans fell last week but remained above 400,000. Separately, U.S. home construction rose modestly in May but are still sluggish.

India's central bank raised its key lending rate by a quarter-percentage point and said its stance remains "firmly anti-inflationary," hinting at more raises to come.

Prime Minister Enda Kenny appealed to fellow European leaders to ease up on Ireland as it struggles to overcome its worst debt crisis, saying his country is "not a socio-political experiment."

The European Central Bank reaffirmed its call for "strong vigilance" in the fight against inflation risks, leading many to believe that a rate rise is in the offing at the bank's next meeting.

The Swiss National Bank delayed reining in its expansive monetary policy, even as it warned of a budding housing-market bubble, saying the recent surge in the franc has added to the risks facing Switzerland's economy.

The euro zone's inflation rate fell for the first time in nine months in May, official data showed, but the small decline is unlikely to alter expectations that the ECB will raise interest rates next month.