There have been two new developments over the weekend whose implications are worth considering ahead of the opening the markets. In Portugal, after the markets closed on Friday, the Constitutional Court struck down part of the government's austerity measures. In Italy, the caretaker government, confirmed yesterday that it pay down about half of the debt it owes largely to small and medium businesses for services rendered. The payments may begin within days, according to some reports. The court ruled that the Portuguese government violated that constitutional requirement for an equitable distribution of austerity and ... (full story)