France

From books and plays like "Dangerous Liaisons" and Molière's "Don Juan" to the recent movie "Heartbreaker," seduction has always loomed large in French culture. But is it still true today?

Today, the European Commission said the euro zone will shrink another 0.3 percent in 2013, which is deeper and longer lasting than originally expected.

Francois Hollande gives his first speech to the European Parliament as head of state.

The high court in France has rejected President Francois Hollande's controversial 75 percent tax on millionaires.

Last month, Peugeot secured a $9 billion lifeline from the French government to stay out of bankruptcy. In return, French politicians want the struggling company keep jobs, not cut them.

French bonds fell today in the wake of Moody's downgrading the nation's credit rating. So is the second largest economy in Europe shrugging its collective shoulders? Non!

Europe's second largest economy, France, has just had its AAA credit rating downgraded by the rating agency Moody's.

The French government has just unveiled a budget for next year that includes major tax hikes for the rich and for businesses. France is the second largest economy in the euro zone and so far it has managed to remain a leader in the debt crisis, rather than a victim -- for the most part anyway.

European wine experts are mulling over a critical issue today: whether American wine producers should be allowed to use the word "chateau" on bottles they sell in Europe.

The euro's second-largest economy (and the man who leads it) has been in the spotlight recently. France finds itself in a similar bind as Greece, Italy and Spain -- how do you balance the state budget without crippling economic growth?