Tag: Europe

The European Commission, the executive arm of the European Union, on Wednesday launched an investigation into subsidies given to electric vehicle makers in China, according to President Ursula von der Leyen.

European gas prices moved sharply higher on Friday as workers at Australian natural gas facilities went on strike, prompting fears that a prolonged halt to production could squeeze global supplies.

If pandemic months are excluded, the latest numbers point to the lowest reading since April 2013.

Euro zone inflation fell in July, and new growth figures showed economic activity picking up in the second quarter of this year — but economists still fear a recession could be in the cards.

European stocks are the cheapest they’ve ever been compared with their US peers, according to Citigroup Inc. strategists who have adjusted their global asset allocation to reflect this view.

Confidence among businesses and consumers in the eurozone tumbled in June by more than expected, reflecting greater concerns about the impact of rising European Central Bank interest rates and high inflation that is squeezing spending.

Euro zone bank lending slowed in May as a record series of European Central Bank rate hikes work their way through the financial sector, though the data is unlikely to dissuade policymakers from further tightening.

The U.S. will enter a downturn in the fourth quarter, followed by a “year of contraction and a European recession in 2024,” according to HSBC Asset Management.

European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde said Tuesday that inflation is still too high and it’s still too early for her organization to declare victory over consumer price rises.

Business activity growth in Europe slowed in June, pointing to a difficult end to the second quarter, according to preliminary data Friday.

Shadow banks are growing quickly across the euro zone and represent a growing risk to the entire financial system, requiring lenders to be more stringent when dealing with such entities, European Central Bank supervisor Andrea Enria said.

European markets fell at the start of the new trading week as investors remained jittery over the economic outlook. The benchmark Stoxx 600 index was 0.7% lower shortly before midday London time, with most sectors declining. Chemicals stocks led losses, down 2.1%, as banks eked out a 0.16% gain.

Retail sales in the eurozone flatlined in April, a weaker result than expected, as high inflation and fears of an economic slowdown continue to weigh on household spending.

The lower revision was already predicated by the earlier readings. All of this just points to a slowdown in momentum in euro area services activity.

Inflation in the euro zone eased more than expected in May, with flash figures showing the bloc’s annual headline inflation rate fell to 6.1% in May from 7% in April.

Financial markets could face a sharp downturn in the event of any further shocks to the global economy, European Central Bank Vice-President Luis de Guindos told CNBC on Wednesday.

Confidence among businesses and consumers in the eurozone sank in May by more than expected, indicating that the economic revival after 2022’s energy-price shock has started to fade.

A digital euro could be launched in three or four years but banknotes will be available as long as there is demand for them, Fabio Panetta, a member of the European Central Bank’s Executive Board, told Les Echos.

The contrast between the services and manufacturing readings were already outlined earlier by the French and German reports.

The European Central Bank will have to keep raising interest further to bring inflation back to its mid-term goal of 2% though most of the tightening has already been done, ECB’s Vice President Luis de Guindos said on Thursday.