WASHINGTON/BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari will attend a summit of NATO leaders in Chicago this weekend, the Pakistan Embassy in Washington said on Tuesday, ending speculation Islamabad might be excluded from the high-level talks on Afghanistan's future. Nadeem Hotiana, an embassy spokesman, confirmed Zardari's attendance at the May 20-21 summit, a sign Washington and Islamabad may finally be able to significantly improve ties following the NATO air strike in November that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers and prompted Pakistan to shut NATO supply routes into Afghanistan. ...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Consumer prices were flat in April as households paid less for gasoline and natural gas, possibly giving the U.S. Federal Reserve more room to help economic growth should the recovery stumble. The Labor Department said on Tuesday its Consumer Price Index was unchanged last month after rising 0.3 percent in March. April's increase was in line with economists' expectations. Outside the volatile food and energy category, inflation pressures also appeared to be modest. Core CPI edged up 0.2 percent, matching the increase posted in March. ...

DUESSELDORF, Germany (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives suffered a crushing defeat on Sunday in an election in Germany's most populous state, a result which could embolden the left opposition to step up attacks on her European austerity policies. The election in North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW), a western German state with a bigger population than the Netherlands and an economy the size of Turkey, was held 18 months before a national vote in which Merkel will be fighting for a third term. ...