Iceland no longer willing to join EU, referendum canceled – Icelandic MPs

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Iceland's government supported the proposal of Foreign Minister of the country Gunnar Bragi Sveinsson to drop the plan of joining the EU. The night before both the Progressive Party and the Independence Party reached an agreement to withdraw its application for accession to the European Union, Icelandic State TV and Radio Broadcasting Service reports. The government also decided to cancel the referendum on whether to continue negotiations with the EU.

"In 2009, our former Foreign Minister suggested to submit a formal application for EU membership, so it was done. Quite naturally, I made a proposal to withdraw this statement," Sveinsson said to Icelandic reporters.

Nigeria, Dubai, Iceland: All Better Bets Than US

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Investors who have done well buying U.S. stocks this year could be doing even better with Nigeria.

The Nigerian market, in fact, has outperformed American equities by a large margin, up more than 20 percent this year versus the U.S. gain of a still-respectable 6 percent.

Ditto for Dubai, Iceland, Vietnam and Abu Dhabi. Taken together, the countries form an unlikely quintet that leads the global equity markets and poses opportunities for investors wary of all the stomach-churning turmoil closer to home.