European Reality Check

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The euro zone beat expectations on Tuesday by posting positive growth in the final quarter of 2022 and reducing fears of a potential regional recession.

Preliminary Eurostat data released Tuesday showed that the euro zone grew 0.1% in the fourth quarter. Economists had pointed to a 0.1% contraction over the same period, according to Reuters.
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LONDON, Feb 20 (Reuters) - Britain and the European Union are edging closer to an agreement on solving a dispute over their post-Brexit trading arrangements with Northern Ireland, but any resolution hangs in the balance as it will have to please the demands of several parties.

Below are details on what the different parties want.

 
COPENHAGEN, Feb 20 (Reuters) - Denmark should aim to reduce beef and dairy production by levying an emissions tax on farming of 750 Danish crowns ($108) per tonne in order to reach its ambitious climate targets, the government's independent adviser said on Monday.

Such a tax on farming will increase the incentive for farmers to switch to crops and pork production which emit less greenhouse gases than cattle, according to a report by the Danish Climate Council, which provides recommendations to the government.

 
LONDON/BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The price of carbon emissions permits in Europe's carbon market, the world's most established, hit a record high of 100 euros ($107) per tonne on Tuesday.

Here's what you need to know about the European Union's emissions trading system (ETS) and sectors affected by rising costs in the scheme:

 
It was a day for grim inflation readings in Europe, as one report showed the surge in costs at grocery stores in the U.K.

Data from Kantar, covering the four weeks ending Feb. 19, showed grocery inflation reached 17% year-over-year, which it said was the highest it’s ever recorded. That comes even before the latest supply crunch to hit the U.K. as tomatoes and other key vegetables were in short supply. ...
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Measured by the European Union’s harmonized standards, French inflation rose to 7.2% year-over-year in February from 7% in January, while Spain’s consumer prices rose 5.8% year-over-year in January, after a 5.5% rise in December.

In France, food inflation was 14.5% year-over-year.
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France seeks 'nuclear alliance' at EU energy meeting​

BRUSSELS, 27. FEB, 16:23

France is building an alliance of pro-nuclear states to advocate for expanding nuclear power in the bloc.

EU energy ministers are meeting on Monday and Tuesday (27 and 28 February) to discuss issues ranging from security of supply to the upcoming electricity market reform.

More:

 
Europe’s benchmark natural gas prices fell in February for the third consecutive month, extending the monthly losing streak to the longest since 2020, as milder weather, comfortable inventories, and a plunge in demand dragged down prices.

 
LONDON (Reuters) - The European Union said on Wednesday it had reached a deal on the world's first set of comprehensive rules for issuing green bonds to meet the bloc's net zero goals, although compliance will be on a voluntary basis.

EU member states and the European Parliament jointly agreed on Tuesday standards for companies that want to use the term "European green bond" or EuGB.

 
UK logistics leaders have welcomed changes to the Northern Ireland Protocol contained in the ‘Windsor Framework’, announced by the UK and EU this week.

Representatives from retail, forwarding and customs in the UK said the deal – still subject to a vote by MPs – would not only reduce post-Brexit tension with the EU, but ease the flow of goods across the Irish Sea.

 
Total assets on the ECB’s balance sheet, released today, plunged by €1.005 trillion from the peak in June 2022, to €7.83 trillion, the lowest level since June 2021:

EU-ECB-balance-sheet-2023-03-07-total-assets_.png

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ATHENS, March 7 (Xinhua) -- A bright future lies ahead for Sino-Greek cooperation in shipping, Chinese and Greek speakers told an event at Greece's Piraeus port on Tuesday.

"Cooperation between China and Greece came initially from the sea, and its future lies in the sea," said the president of the Association of Banking and Financial Executives of Hellenic Shipping at the event.

 
  • UK childcare is among the most expensive in the world
  • 1.5 million UK mums would work more hours if childcare allowed
  • Finance minister Hunt urged to act on costs in March 15 budget
  • Research predicts childcare reforms could boost economic growth
  • Opposition Labour Party sees childcare pledge as vote-winner
 
From the link:

LONDON, March 10 (Reuters) - New rules in Europe to crack down on greenwashing are not making it easier to spot genuine environmentally-friendly funds as asset managers continue to apply different standards for what constitutes sustainable investing.

More than 30 fund managers, consultants, lawyers and regulators interviewed by Reuters said that despite European Union rules demanding more disclosure, funds remained hard to compare and greenwashing difficult to spot.

 
 
 
As Sweden looks to reorganize its embattled 1 trillion kronor ($90 billion) pension system following an embezzlement scandal, the office overseeing the process says it won't accept applications from asset managers that don't incorporate ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) into their strategies.

 
If Xi Jinping chooses to "befriend a war criminal, it is our duty to get very serious about China," Lithuania's foreign minister, Gabrielius Landsbergis, told DW when asked what he thought about the Chinese president's three-day visit to Moscow and his meeting with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.

 
  • Europeans told "age of abundance" is over
  • Rising debt forces political choices on governments
  • More strikes loom unless compromises can be found
 
LONDON, April 11 (Reuters) - Investors poured $367 billion into U.S. money market funds in March, according to data provider EPFR, as the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank caused stocks to tumble and called the safety of bank deposits into question.

In Europe, investors put 17.7 billion euros ($19.35 billion) into euro-denominated money market funds in March, Refinitiv Lipper data shows, when the Credit Suisse crisis rocked markets.

 
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