EU drafting error creates financial trading ‘Wild West’
In an embarrassing drafting mistake, the European Securities and Markets Authority - the European Union's financial markets regulator - created an 18-month window…
Finance
Latest reporting and analysis on finance.
Fragmented Europe to make new bid for US-style capital market
After years of struggling to raise capital in European Union markets, Mews - a hospitality software firm with Czech roots -finally secured funding by registering…
EC set to target Poland over excessive debt, Warsaw warns
The Polish finance ministry said it expected the European Commission to initiate a so-called excessive deficit procedure (EDP) against the country.
The Spanish paradox: Its economy may be recovering, but its people are not feeling it. The migrant crisis might be part of the answer
In a recent piece for Euronews. Piero Cingari waxed lyrical about Spain's economy.
‘Opaque’ EU debt mountain growing, German study warns
“EU debt is politically attractive. Economically, however, it creates the wrong incentives, especially for highly indebted Member States,” researchers say
Chinese solar firms hit by EU probes in new test of subsidy law
The European Union started probes into bids by Chinese firms for a Romanian solar park, in the latest test of a freshly minted law aimed at preventing state-funded…
Eneco pulls back from massive Dutch offshore wind farms, criticising government policy
What should have been one of the Netherlands' most prestigious green projects has now become a painful loss for the Dutch government.
Belgium ‘risks becoming Greece on the North Sea’, warns national bank chief
The Governor of the National Bank of Belgium says debt seriously threatens the economy.
No shift, Sherlock? Well, ECB hints of summer interest-rate cuts as Eastern Europe wields axe
It could be a sunnier summer for the Eurozone after the European Central Bank (ECB) hinted it might finally cut high interest rates that have enriched banks but…
‘EC President cause of economic woes,’ says German finance minister
"It is Ursula von der Leyen's legacy that we have chosen regulation instead of innovation," Lindner told German newspaper Handelsblatt on March 6.
UK non-doms and vapers hit under Hunt’s taxation budget proposals
Britain's finance minister Jeremy Hunt said he would abolish a so-called "non-dom" status that let residents, including those in European Union countries, avoid…
Two years into the conflict, have Putin and the Russian economy been the real winners of the war in Ukraine? Depressingly that’s what the numbers suggest
Since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 hundreds of thousands of lives have been lost, millions of people have been displaced, Western economies…
EU gives banks just nine months to prepare for instant euro payments
The EU has given payment providers just nine months to get ready to accept instant euro payments, a move that the bloc hopes will help European payment providers…
A $1.5 trillion ‘ESG’ debt market has started bleeding clients
In the world’s second-biggest ESG debt market, corporate clients are starting to walk away.
Icy blast of bankruptcies loom for Swedish wind-power sector, experts warn
Two Swedish economists have issued a warning that the country’s wind-power industry is on the brink of a wave of bankruptcies.
German home-building collapses amid economic downturn
Building permits for apartments in Germany fell 27 per cent in 2023, the statistics office said, underscoring a downturn in demand in the construction and real estate…
German, Dutch central banks post big losses, warn of more
The German and Dutch central banks on Friday posted multi-billion euro losses for 2023 and predicted more financial pain ahead, suggesting that they are unlikely…
Eurovision scrutinises Israel’s song lyrics amid Gaza furore
Eurovision Song Contest organisers are scrutinising the Israeli submission after lyrics leaked to the media appeared to refer to the October 7 attack by Hamas that…
‘All about control’: EP committee approves establishment of Digital Euro
The digital euro passed a key hurdle on February 15, with a European Parliament committee approving a draft opinion backing the European Central Bank's proposed…
UK enters recession as clouds darken over Sunak
Britain's economy fell into a recession in the second half of 2023, a tough backdrop for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak who has promised to boost growth ahead of an…
Germany hits NATO spending target for first time since Cold War’s end
Germany has met a NATO alliance target to spend 2 per cent of its gross domestic product on defence for the first time since the early 1990s, a defence ministry…
Digital euro launch likely delayed as the hot money backs China
The digital euro's launch looks likely to be pushed back substantially from its 2027 goal.
EU insurance regulation is not working, it needs an overhaul – says Ireland’s former Europe Minister
The handling of an inquiry into motor insurers in Bulgaria and Romania raises serious questions for the European Commission and the EU's regulators, writes Ireland's…
Hungary agrees to EU aid package for Ukraine
All 27 leaders of the European Union on February 1 reached a deal on a €50 billion aid package for Ukraine.
German companies begin four-day working week experiment
Some 45 German companies have made a radical change; their employees will be able to work one day a week less for the same salary.
Italy defence minister warns of Red Sea ‘threat’ for Europe’s ports
Ongoing disruption in the Red Sea threatens to destabilise Italy's economy and marginalise ports in southern Europe, Italy's defence minister said.
Eurozone economy flatlined in 2023 with little hope of new life this year
The Eurozone economy stagnated last year, underperforming the rest of the world as former powerhouse Germany struggled with an industrial malaise that has no end…
‘EU will hurt Hungary if it blocks further Ukrainian aid’
Secret documents show the European Union is planning to intentionally damage Hungary's economy if the country decides to reject more funding for Ukraine at an upcoming…
Germany’s Scholz calls for completion of EU capital markets union
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz called on Sunday for the European Union to complete its creation of a banking and capital markets union, so the bloc can compete with…
Paris leads race for EU’s new AMLA HQ but Dublin ‘gains momentum’
Several countries are competing to house the European Union's newly formed anti-money laundering authority (AMLA).