Morning business round-up: EU transaction tax

What made the business news in Asia and Europe this morning? Here's our daily business round-up:

All eyes were on Berlin where a key vote was taking place in the German parliament over approving expanded powers for the EU's main bailout fund.

The vote - which was seen as a test of Chancellor Angela Merkel's authority - was passed by a large majority.

Many Germans are against committing more money to prop up struggling eurozone members such as Greece.

There have been protests in Athens where international inspectors are due for talks on further bailout funds.

A Greek default , according to analysts at business services group Ernst & Young.

The firm's quarterly Eurozone Forecast also says that the chance of recession in the euro bloc has increased sharply.

Rising financial tensions and a near stalling of economic growth means "there is a real danger that events will overtake policymakers", it said.

Mobile phone giant Nokia is to cut 3,500 jobs and close a plant in Romania as part of its restructuring plan.

The cuts are in addition to thousands of job losses already announced by Nokia, which in April unveiled a 1bn-euro cost-cutting programme.

Nokia said it would shut its plant in Cluj, Romania, and cut jobs in its location division, whose products include maps for mobile phones.

Retail sales in Japan registered a surprisingly sharp fall in August as a post-earthquake rebound petered out.

Sales fell 2.7% versus a year ago, a much sharper decline than the 0.6% rate expected by markets.

It ends two months of rising sales during which the Japanese economy appeared to be returning to normality after the natural disaster in March.

Thomas Cook has said bookings by its UK customers were "flat" during the summer holiday season, but that its full-year profits should be "broadly in line with market expectations".

In a trading statement, the travel company also said it was continuing to be affected by the political turmoil in the Middle East and North Africa.

However, its sales in northern Europe, including Germany, were up strongly.

In the latest edition of Business Daily from the BBC World Service looks at the two extremes of the world food industry - the vast companies that control global food supplies and the people who do not have enough food.