France wasn't the only European country to hold elections yesterday, but the feeling across the continent was certainly one of change. From local elections in Italy to a tight presidential race in Serbia, competitions outside of France told equally interesting stories about changing attitudes toward life in the Euro-zone. Andrew Walker is a correspondent for our partner the BBC, and Ken Rogoff is former chief economist at the International Monetary Fund.

Twenty-three European Union countries, including all 17 that use the euro, agreed to an intergovernmental treaty that dictates strict tax and budget rules early Friday. The measure fell short of Germany and France's goal to get all 27 EU nations to back changes to the union's treaties after objections from Britain. Prime Minister David Cameron had sought exemptions for the U.K.'s financial sector. The fiscal compact, which penalizes members for breaking deficit rules, was welcomed by Mario Draghi, the new head of the European Central Bank.

World markets plunged Tuesday after Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou announced a surprise plan to hold a national referendum on the proposed European bailout package, bringing the Greek government to the brink of collapse. Several members of Parliament's governing Socialist Party have called on Papandreou to resign, and some members of his own party have called for new elections immediately. A no-confidence vote is scheduled for Friday. Early Wednesday, the Greek cabinet backed Papandreou's referendum plan. Some analysts worry the referendum will bring Greece dangerously close to defaulting on its debt.

Greek Prime Minister George Panpandreou is in Germany to meet with Chancellor Angela Merkel to discuss a new strategy to keep his country from defaulting on its debt. Greece needs a further €8 billion to pay its bills. Without it, hundreds of thousands of civil servants will not get paid. Early Tuesday, Greek Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos said his country will receive bailout funds.

European and Asian markets are being hammered this morning as markets react to the Federal Reserve's warning about the weak state of the U.S. economy, and fears of another recession in the euro zone. On Wednesday, the Fed predicted the U.S. economy was still years away from a full recovery, and announced it would buy long-term Treasury bonds and sell short-term bonds to stimulate lending. Andrew Walker, economics correspondent for the BBC, has the latest.

Insurer AIG has rejected a lower offer for it's Asian arm, AIA. Prudential had lowered the offer price to appease their shareholders, but as BBC economic correspondent, Andrew Walker explains, the lower price did not appeal to AIG.

The International Monetary Fund says the global recession is ending. In its twice-yearly assessment of the economic outlook for the world, the IMF predicts a 3.1 percent global economic growth rate. We talk with the BBC’s economics correspondent, Andrew Walker.

It's Monday and that means it's time to check what's on the agenda this week. Marcus Mabry, International Business Editor for our partner, The New York Times, and Andrew Walker from the BBC, both join us as we talk about what to look for in the news this week: health care reform, the G20 meeting's start in Pittsburgh and the UN General Assembly's kickoff.  All that and the future of ACORN and New York Governor David Paterson.

One year ago, the collapse of financial giant Lehman Brothers was just the first domino in a string of banking failures that culminated in the financial crisis that has now reverberated around the world today. A new report [1.2 MB, PDF] commissioned by our partners, the BBC World Service, looks at the effect of this crisis on migration patterns around the world. One myth the report debunks is that immigrants are returning home in greater numbers than before the recession; instead, the MPI determined that immigrants are choosing to stay in their adopted countries despite the lack of jobs. For more myth-busting, we talk to the BBC's Economics Correspondent Andrew Walker, and Michael Fix, co-author of the Migration Policy Institute's report.

Takeaway Extra! Report co-author Michael Fix discusses the surprising lack of success with newly-implemented pay-to-go programs, where countries pay immigrants a fixed amount of money to return to their countries of origin.

For more, read the BBC article on the report itself, as well as several graphic highlights.

Global stock markets have recorded some strong gains in April with the main indices in New York, London and Tokyo rising by between seven and nine percent as investors responded to signs that the economic situation might be stabilizing. Is this the light at the end of the tunnel for the world's economies? Here to talk us through what these figures mean is the BBC's economics and business correspondent Andrew Walker.

The Royal Bank of Scotland has announced the largest annual loss in corporate history in the United Kingdom. The Royal Bank of Scotland said it will insure assets worth 325 billion pounds, or $462 billion, with the British government, who owns two-thirds of the bank. This comes after RBS. nearly collapsed during the credit crisis and needed British taxpayer's money to stay afloat. Andrew Walker, BBC economics correspondent, joins us now to talk about how this compares to the situation banks in the U.S. are facing.

The European Union is strongly objecting to a "Buy American" clause in the $800 billion economic stimulus plan being debated in the U.S. Senate. The clause would ensure that only U.S. iron, steel, and manufactured goods are used in infrastructure projects paid for in the stimulus package. The E.U. says it will launch a complaint with the World Trade Organization if the clause remains. Andrew Walker, BBC Economics and Business correspondent.

On Tuesday morning the Japanese stock market completed its investment year with a final session that ended 1.3% higher. This is a small high note in what was a dismal year for the Nikkei. The market tallied losses of over 42%, the worst annual performance ever. Andrew Walker, the BBC Business and Economics Correspondent, joins The Takeaway to explain what this means for Japan and the global economy.

The financial markets open just as the Bank of England and the European Central Bank dramatically slash rates.