The news at a glance

Euro crisis: Bailout deadline looms in Greece

Thousands of Greeks went on strike to protest severe budget cuts this week, as the country’s leaders and euro zone officials tried to stave off default with another round of rescue loans, said Niki Kitsantonis in The New York Times. Greek leaders have been trying to push through economic reforms in order to clinch a $171 billion bailout from the country’s international creditors. Without those funds, the country will default on bond payments due next month. But its creditors’ demands for more austerity measures are “making it increasingly difficult for the Greek economy to outrun the country’s mounting debt burden.” The government announced this week that 15,000 state jobs will be cut this year, a move that sparked widespread strikes across Athens.

Greek leaders have few good options left, said Joanna Kakissis in Time.com. They can agree to painful cuts, secure the bailout funds, and “face the wrath of anti-austerity voters in spring elections.” Or they can dither and lead the country into chaotic default. With unemployment at 19 percent and rising, “it’s the uncertainty that’s wearing me down,” says Greek journalist Kostas Galitsakis. “It’s very hard not to fear the worst.”

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Housing: More help for underwater homeowners

President Obama unveiled a plan last week to resuscitate the housing market by making it easier for struggling homeowners to refinance their mortgages, said Zachary A. Goldfarb in The Washington Post. Under the proposal, homeowners with credit scores higher than 580 and a six-month record of timely mortgage payments would be eligible to refinance at historically low interest rates, regardless of whether they owe more on their homes than they are worth. The move, which Republicans have pledged to oppose, would cost taxpayers between $5 billion and $10 billion.

Media: Verizon and Redbox take on Netflix

Verizon and video-kiosk company Redbox announced this week that they would team up to launch an online streaming service for TV and movies later this year, said Sinead Carew in Reuters.com. The alliance puts the companies in direct competition with Netflix, the DVD rental and video-streaming giant, but analysts say Netflix’s huge media library may give it a decisive advantage. “Netflix is spending up to $1 billion a year on content,” says analyst Daniel Ernst. “For me, it’s doubtful that these two companies will invest to that level.”

Mergers: The birth of a commodities giant

Glencore, a leading global commodities trading company, will merge with mining titan Xstrata to create the world’s fourth largest natural-resources business, said Robert Barr in the Associated Press. The combined company, worth about $90 billion, will have major interests in mining and refining, as well as shipping and storing commodities like corn, coal, and copper. The deal is likely to be approved by shareholders, though some major Xstrata investors believe the deal’s terms undervalue the mining company.

Retail: Putting vacant malls to new uses

America’s struggling malls are being reinvented, said Stephanie Clifford in The New York Times. Hurt by both the recession and the rise of Internet shopping, malls and shopping strips are increasingly leasing space to “schools, medical clinics, call centers, government offices, and even churches” to combat near record vacancy rates. Features like dog parks, putting greens, and casinos are being added to attract customers, and the Galleria in Cleveland has even converted part of its glass-enclosed space into a vegetable garden. “I don’t look at [the space] as retail,” said Galleria executive Vicky Poole. “You can’t anymore.”