News Headlines - 14 January 2012

▽Sinking Ship: Deaths As Liner Runs Aground - Sky News
http://news.sky.com/home/world-news/article/16148897
At least three people have died and four more are missing after a luxury cruise ship carrying thousands of passengers, including 24 British holidaymakers, ran aground off the coast of Italy.

▽S&P Cuts Credit Ratings for France, Italy, Spain - ABC News
http://abcnews.go.com/Business/wireStory/sp-cuts-credit-ratings-france-italy-spain-15357833#.TxFT3KU5JWI
Standard & Poor's swept the debt-ridden European continent with punishing credit downgrades Friday, stripping France of its coveted AAA status and dropping Italy even lower. Germany retained its top-notch rating, but Portugal's debt was consigned to junk.

▽German Five-, 30-Year Yields Drop to Records on Europe Crisis - BusinessWeek
http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-01-14/german-five-30-year-yields-drop-to-records-on-europe-crisis.html
German bonds gained this week, with five-year and 30-year yields falling to records, as government officials said Standard & Poor’s may lower the credit ratings of some euro-area nations, spurring demand for the safest assets.

▽PM says Japan must tackle public debt or it could be next target of ratings cut after Europe - Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/markets/pm-says-japan-must-tackle-public-debt-or-it-could-be-next-target-of-ratings-cut-after-europe/2012/01/14/gIQAH9NxxP_story.html
Japan’s prime minister, attempting to build support for painful fiscal reforms, said Saturday that the country should be alarmed by ratings cuts in Europe and must tackle its massive public debts to avoid becoming the next target.

▽Russian space probe is falling to Earth - The Independent
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/russian-space-probe-is-falling-to-earth-6288891.html
A crippled Russian spacecraft is likely to crash to Earth sometime on Sunday at an unspecified location.