Page 67 - European Union

European Union takes key step toward ending era of combustion-engine cars

The last-minute deal is a concession to high-end sports car brands like Germany's Porsche, but is expected to have little effect on the plans of most major manufacturers.

European Union leaders grapple with banking crisis as economy weakens

European Union leaders gathered Friday to gauge the risk of a banking crisis developing from recent global financial turbulence and hitting the economy even harder than the energy crunch tied to Russia's war in Ukraine. The deliberations by EU government heads in Brussels follow US regulators shutting down two US banks, including Silicon Valley Bank, and a Swiss-orchestrated takeover of troubled lender Credit Suisse by rival UBS. The emergency actions on both sides of the Atlantic revived memories of the 2008 global financial meltdown and the ensuing EU sovereign debt crisis, which almost broke apart the euro currency now shared by 20 European countries. For the moment, we see no reason to be worried, Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo told reporters on his way to the EU meeting. But we monitor it really closely, almost on a daily basis, because no one knows what can happen. The European economy has been slowing rapidly since Russia invaded Ukraine 13 months ago to the day, .

EU to propose clampdown on firms using fake 'green' claims on products

The European Union is set to propose on Wednesday new requirements on companies seeking to promote goods sold in Europe with labels like "natural", "climate neutral" or having "recycled content"

European Commission proposes rules to protect consumers from greenwashing

The European Union's executive arm proposed rules on Wednesday to protect consumers from businesses selling goods labelled as green which actually aren't. The European Commission said greenwashing was a notable problem, with 53 per cent of green claims on products or services making vague, misleading or unfounded information. About 230 sustainability labels are in use across the 27-nation EU, with vastly different levels of transparency, according to the commission. With its green claims directive, the commission wants to set common criteria that would bring more clarity. The European Parliament and EU member countries need to approve the initiative for it to take effect. Under the proposal, companies that claim the packaging for their products is made of 30 per cent recycled plastic would have to prove it with scientific evidence. EU countries would be in charge of setting up verification processes overseen by independent bodies. Businesses based outside the EU making environmen

EU condemns gender-based discrimination by Taliban in Afghanistan

Where activities cannot be continued in line with the EU's principled approach, the EU support to those activities will be reconsidered, the statement said

Ahead of Xi's visit to Russia, Putin accuses West of fueling Ukraine crisis

Putin also said that the international security and cooperation architecture is being dismantled. Russia has been labeled an 'immediate threat' and China a 'strategic competitor'

Ban on women's education in Afghanistan increases gender violence risk: EU

Taliban has imposed draconian restrictions on the rights to freedom of expression, association, assembly, and movement for women and girls

India, EU conclude another round of talks for proposed trade agreement

India and the European Union (EU) on Saturday concluded the fourth round of talks for a comprehensive free trade agreement in Brussels, a move aimed at further strengthening economic ties between the two sides. The next round of the talks is planned for 12-16 June here. India and the 27-nation bloc resumed negotiations on June 17 last year after a gap of over eight years on the proposed agreements on trade, investments and Geographical Indications (GI). "Round 4 of India EU-FTA negotiations held at Brussels," Nidhi Mani Tripathi, Joint Secretary in the Department of Commerce has said in a tweet. She is India's chief negotiator for the agreement. India had started negotiations for a trade pact with the EU in 2007 but the talks stalled in 2013 as both sides failed to reach an agreement on key issues, including customs duties on automobiles and spirits and the movement of professionals. India's merchandise exports to EU member countries stood at about USD 65 billion in 2021-22, while

Ukraine, EU extend deal on road transport liberalisation till June 2024

Ukraine and the European Union (EU) have extended a deal on road transport liberalisation for one year till June 30, 2024, the Ukrainian government press service has reported

EU asks UEFA to ban Belarus from Euro 2024 due to its human rights record

A group of more than 100 European Union lawmakers is urging European soccer's governing body to ban Belarus from qualifying for the 2024 European Championship. MEPs from across the political spectrum wrote in a letter sent to UEFA president Alexander Ceferin that the Belarusian national team should not be able to compete because of the country's terrible human rights record. "These are not only UEFA values at stake, but also UEFA's reputation and image within democratic societies and international community," they said. Last week, a court in Belarus sentenced exiled opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya to 15 years in prison after a trial in absentia on charges including conspiring to overthrow the government, the latest move in a months-long effort by the government to suppress dissent. Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko is a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin in his war against Ukraine. Russia used Belarusian territory to send troops into Ukraine more than

EU closer to end trade dispute with US, moves on Green Deal funds

The European Union moved closer to ending a trade dispute with US President Joe Biden on Wednesday following months of wrangling over the billions of America-first incentives in his clean technology plans and said it would ramp up a similar subsidy-laden effort at home. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told the parliament plenary that in its attempt to produce at least 40 per cent of the clean tech needed by 2030 in the 27-nation bloc, it would allow for the tax breaks and the flexible use of EU funds on top of simplifying and speeding up industrial approvals. She spoke of a striking symmetry between the US efforts and the European Green Deal plans. Both of them are simultaneously a climate strategy and a strategy for investment and growth, von der Leyen said. Her upbeat comments came on the eve of the European Commission, the EU's executive arm, tabling plans for the Net-Zero Industry Act on industrial incentives and a Critical Raw Materials Act, which seeks to .

Credit Suisse leads Europe bank stock rout after short-lived SVB respite

A fresh 18% drop in embattled Swiss lender Credit Suisse led the wider European banking index lower

European bank stocks under pressure; Credit Suisse tumbles to a new low

Investors rushed back into safe-havens, with two-year German bond yields down 21 basis points at 2.71%

In European Union's inflation crisis, the humble egg takes the cake

The humble egg has become a star performer for all the wrong reasons as inflation has hit households across the European Union extremely hard over the year. The EU's statistical agency Eurostat announced Friday that the average price of an egg that important staple for poor families and gourmet cooks alike had risen by 30 per cent over the year to January 2023, becoming a symbol of how the cost of living has hit everyone in the 27-nation bloc. Even if the latest inflation figures show that annual inflation in the 20-nation eurozone has started to decline to 8.5 per cent in February, the sector of food, alcohol and tobacco continued to rise and stood at 15 per cent. And then, eggs outperform just about all. Two years ago, egg inflation still stood at a lean 1 per cent, rising to 7 per cent the year after before reaching 30 per cent in February. Egg prices were whipped up the most in the Czech Republic, rising 85 per cent over the year, followed closely by two other central Europea

EU considers sending more military support to Ukraine as war rages on

European Union (EU) defence ministers discussed the idea of sending further military support to Ukraine, at an informal meeting in the Swedish capital Stockholm

China's trade contracts again in Jan, Feb as Western demand weakens

China's trade contracted again in January and February as US and European demand weakened in the face of interest rate hikes, adding to pressure on official efforts to revive economic growth following the end of anti-virus controls. Exports sank 6.8 per cent from a year earlier to USD 506.3 billion, an improvement over December's 10.1 per cent decline, customs data showed Tuesday. Imports fell 10.2 per cent to USD 389.4 billion, deepening December's 7.3 per cent contraction. China's global trade surplus for the two months edged up 0.8 per cent over a year earlier to USD 116.9 billion. Forecasters expected trade to weaken as the likelihood of a recession in Western economies increased following rate hikes by the Federal Reserve and European Central Bank to cool economic activity and record-setting inflation. We don't expect exports to rebound, Iris Pang of ING said in a report. That adds to complications for President Xi Jinping's government, which is trying to revive economic grow

Hungarian delegation supports Sweden's Nato membership application

A parliamentary delegation from Hungary said Tuesday that it supports Sweden's NATO membership bid after meeting the speaker of the Swedish parliament to iron out what Hungary's governing party has called political disputes. Some Hungarian lawmakers have raised doubts about whether to support the NATO membership applications by Sweden and Finland, citing what they call blatant lies from Stockholm and Helsinki on the state of Hungary's democracy. But the Hungarian delegation indicated Tuesday that the parliament in Budapest would ultimately ratify Sweden's NATO bid. We support Sweden's NATO membership, Hungary's deputy parliamentary speaker, Csaba Hende, told Swedish news agency TT. We made it clear that the Hungarian government, the Hungarian president, the prime minister and most of the Hungarian parliamentarians clearly support Swedish NATO membership, Hende said, according to TT. He added that it was necessary to improve bilateral relations between Budapest and Stockholm. Hunga

WhatsApp to clearly outline how its privacy updates will affect EU users

WhatsApp confirmed that users' personal data are not shared with third-parties or other Meta companies -- including Facebook -- for advertising purposes

Ukraine, Latvia agree to Ukraine's Euro, Euro-Atlantic integration

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and his visiting Latvian counterpart, Egils Levits, have signed a joint declaration confirming Latvia's support

EU postpones vote on combustion engine ban amid opposition from Germany

The adoption by European Union member countries of new carbon dioxide emission standards for cars and vans has been postponed amid opposition from Germany and conservative lawmakers, the Swedish presidency of the EU ministers' council said Friday. The vote initially scheduled for next week will take place at a later council meeting on a date yet to be announced, according to the Swedish presidency of the Council of the European Union. Germany's transportation minister said last week that his country would not back a proposed EU ban on the sale of new cars with combustion engines from 2035. He wanted assurances from the bloc's executive arm that there would be an exemption for synthetic fuels. The conservative European People's Party group, which is the largest bloc in the European Parliament, is also opposing the ban and called on member countries to do the same. The ban prevents innovation and doesn't reduce additional CO2 emissions, the group said Friday. "The EPP Group is convin