In diamond centre Antwerp, Russian gems are already shunned
Only a few weeks after Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Antwerp-based diamond dealer Thierry Tugendhaft started receiving calls from big jewellers in Paris…
Economy
Latest reporting and analysis on economy.
Advantage UK if Germany bails on fighter-jet project with France, says British ex-minister
Any decision by Germany to jettison its €100 billion fighter-jet project with France and remove its veto on a UK-Saudi aircraft deal would be "advantageous" to…
UK academics want cigarette-style warnings on meat
Researchers at Durham University in the UK have suggested using graphic health warnings on meat, similar to those on tobacco products, in a bid to help reduce consumption…
EC chief pushes for Western Balkans reforms over EU enlargement
The President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen made a four-day visit starting October 30 to North Macedonia, Kosovo, Montenegro, Serbia, and Bosnia…
Australia-EU trade talks hit brick wall
Despite earlier optimism, Australia's trade talks with the European Union have crumbled over agriculture, with both parties putting the blame on the other side on…
EU nations lost out on €61 billion in VAT in 2021, EC report finds
European Union Member States lost out on a total of €61 billion in VAT payments in 2021, according to the European Commission VAT Gap Report 2023 released on…
Siemens Energy needs billions of state support as wind division tanks
The German industrial multinational Siemens is in dire need of cash as a result of bad investments in sustainable energy.
EC defends ‘incomprehensible’ €18m-plus EU PR campaign
The European Commission has defended a PR campaign promoting the European Union after it was slammed as "incomprehensible" by an MEP.
Grapes of wrath: French winegrowers destroy Spanish rivals’ imports
Angry winegrowers in France blocked lorries coming from Spain and destroyed the wine they were carrying, claiming the cheaper imports are destroying the local market.
Poland: Tusk heads to Brussels as justice minister challenges EU ban on fossil fuel cars
Donald Tusk, who has been nominated by his party as candidate for Prime Minister, is due to travel to Brussels on October 25 or 26 to talk with European Union leaders…
EC has ‘no comment’ on alleged Romanian EU competition-law violation
The European Commission has nothing to say about reports of anti-competitive behaviour by Romanian authorities.
Slovakian President decries nomination of ‘climate-change sceptic’ as environment minister
Slovakian President Zuzana Čaputová is postponing the installation of her new government as she is against the nomination of Rudolf Huliak, whom she said was a…
ECB moves ahead with digital euro project
The European Central Bank (ECB) is starting preparations for developing a digital euro that would be available free of charge to everyone in the Eurozone for any…
FOCUS-Ryanair fights off European squeeze on its ticket prices
Ryanair is facing challenges at both ends of its price range, with Europe's largest airline taking aim at proposed minimum fares in France after fending off a cap…
Irish Government’s anti-meat tweet deleted amid farmers’ outrage
A tweet encouraging the public in Ireland not to eat meat was axed by a state agency of the Irish Government after a backlash from farming organisations in the country.
France prevails as EU strikes agreement on landmark electricity market reform
The European Council has reached agreement on a proposal to amend the European Union's electricity landscape that includes French nuclear power, despite the industry…
Orbán meets Putin in Beijing, highlighting mutual ‘good relations’
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has become the first European Union leader to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin since an international arrest warrant…
Ikea hikes security in Belgian stores after Brussels terror attack on Swedes
Swedish furniture giant Ikea has announced it is ramping up security in its Belgian stores after the terror attack in Brussels on October 16.
Beware Country Garden and Evergrande: a Chinese property crunch could be about to set off a global financial crisis
Country Garden sounds so innocuous, but so did Freddie Mac and Fanny Mae, until those sweet sounding names became shorthand for global financial disaster.
Italy unveils tax-cutting 2024 budget amid debt worries
Italy's government on Monday approved a budget for next year with measures worth around 24 billion euros in tax cuts and increased spending, despite market concerns…
Football clubs seek to test European Commission powers to regulate game-changing subsidies
Spain's top men’s professional football division La Liga has taken a complaint about France's Paris Saint-Germain team to EC referees, arguing the French club's…
Venice mayor suspends electric bus service after two accidents
Venice Mayor Luigi Brugnaro announced a ban on La Linea's electric buses following two accidents involving its vehicles, one of which resulted in the deaths of 21…
EU countries fail to agree on extending glyphosate approval
European Union governments failed on Friday to give a decisive opinion on a proposal to extend by 10 years EU approval for the use of glyphosate, the active ingredient…
Borrell aims to rebuild trust that has ‘eroded’ between EU and China
The European Union's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said on October 13 that China needs to restore confidence with Western investors.
Monarchy is outdated, says Belgium’s Prince Laurent
Prince Laurent of Belgium, brother of current King Philippe, said in an interview that the monarchy is a "medieval institution".
The fall of the Berlin Wall was a great moment of liberation – but does it also divide Germany’s former good times from the current bad times?
The Berlin Wall was one of the starkest and most tangible emblems of the Cold War divide between East and West.
Latvia’s new coalition government may struggle with economic reforms, experts predict
Latvia's economy has needed significant reform for some time but the recently installed coalition leadership might struggle to deliver it, analysts forecast.
EC’s Bulgarian gas-company loan a ‘massive cock-up’
The European Commission approved a €400 million loan to Bulgargaz, the Bulgarian state-owned gas company that is accused of creating "a backdoor for Russian gas"…
Baltic Sea gas pipeline damaged via ‘mechanical’ means, minister claims
A major pipeline located in the Baltic Sea was damaged via "mechanical" means, Estonia's defence minister has claimed.
ECR ‘green’ energy conference-speakers blow holes in wind-power industry
The European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) group held a conference titled Wind energy - at what cost?