Hamburg - Honda has come out tops for the second time in succession in terms of customer satisfaction and service in Germany, according to a market survey released by the JD Power-Report 2008. 

Kiel, Germany - German scientists forecast Tuesday that fertile pa

Dresden, Germany  - French police investigating alleged insider trading in EADS shares by the cross-bord

Lindwedel, Germany - Four young Polish nationals doing casual farm work we

Munich - German carmaker BMW and its Italian rival Fiat disclosed Tuesday that they were studying whether to link up to make a small car that could be marketed as both a Mini and an Alfa Romeo.

The announcement, issued in Munich and in Turin, said a cooperation deal between the two marques to share "platforms and components" was conceivable. Mini is BMW's bottom-of-the-range brand.

The firms said they had already signed a declaration of intent but would not be releasing any more details yet. They would disclose by the end of the year how far the talks had proceeded.

Munich - Two young men who beat up an elderly former school principal were given severe jail terms Tuesday, closing a case that triggered debate in Germany about violence by minorities.

Serkan A, aged 21, who is a Turkish national, was jailed for 12 years. Spyridon L, aged 18, who has Greek nationality, was jailed for eight and a half years. Both grew up in Germany. Politicians had demanded earlier they be expelled to their parents' homelands.

They were convicted of attempted murder in the Munich attack, which was filmed by closed-circuit TV security cameras on December 20, 2007, and aired for weeks on German television, arousing rage among many Germans during the Christmas season.