The Merkel-Sarkozy agreement on a fiscal union may survive, but it won't include Great Britain. Prime Minister David Cameron is adamantly opposed to the new rules that would give Brussels unprecedented power to approve national budgets and enforce rules governing budget deficits, as well as protocols that would strip the city of London of their pre-eminent role in the financial services sector. Reuters: Europe divided on Friday in a historic rift over building a closer fiscal union to preserve the euro, with an overwhelming majority of countries led by Germany and France agreeing to forge ahead with a separate treaty, leaving the EU's third biggest economy Britain isolated. The outcome of a two-day European Union summit left financial markets uncertain whether and when more decisive action would be taken to stem a debt crisis that began in Greece, spread to Portugal, Ireland, Italy and Spain and now threatens France and even economic powerhouse Germany. A new treaty could take three...(Read Full Post)