Trade
Archive
US, EU temporarily end some tariffs
The US and EU have agreed to a four month suspension of some tariffs that each had previously imposed on one another as punishment...
Analysis
The need for Indo-EU cooperation to expand security in a new multilateral, geo-political situation
India is one of the world’s largest economies, in the world, in terms of purchasing power parity. The country is the fastest-growing large economy,...
Archive
British PM says EU ‘undermined’ Northern Ireland Protocol
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the European Union undermined the Northern Ireland Protocol by triggering an emerging provision in the Brexit Protocol in...
Albania
The EU-China investment agreement is a disaster for the West
The EU-China Comprehensive Investment Agreement that was announced in December 2020 at joint virtual press conference between Ursula von der Leyen, Charles Michel, Xi...
Archive
Michel Barnier appointed as Brexit special adviser to von der Leyen
Former EU chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier has been appointed as Ursula von der Leyen's special adviser on the implementation of the EU-UK Withdrawal...
Albania
Trump Administration’s controversial Kosovo gambit accelerates
While not unexpected, the Trump Administration has moved faster than many observers anticipated to restart its ongoing diplomatic initiative to resolve a significant piece...
Archive
Fake pharmaceuticals trade worth €4 billion, study says
The trade of counterfeit pharmaceuticals worldwide is estimated to be worth up to €4 billion, with India and China identified to be the largest...
Archive
Coronavirus economic impact will be worse than 2008, WTO says
The economic downturn and job losses resulting resulting from the coronavirus pandemic is expected to be worse than the global financial crisis of 2008,...
Asia & Pacific
Locked down, without answers
Most European governments are turning to increasingly harsh lockdowns to confront the coronavirus pandemic. They did so in the wake of watching Italy’s attempt...
Archive
EU-UK exchange draft legal texts on future relationship
Michel Barnier, EU's chief Brexit negotiator and his counterpart, British Prime Minister's Europe adviser David Frost, exchanged on Wednesday evening draft legal texts on...
Archive
Brexit talks on hold amid coronavirus outbreak
European Union and United Kingdom officials cancelled on Tuesday the second round of talks aimed at agreeing a trade deal, because of coronavirus concerns.
Both...
Archive
G7 pledge to do 'whatever it takes' to safeguard world economy
Officials from the G7 countries pledged to join forces to address the damage of the coronavirus pandemic, which they called "a human tragedy”.
Earlier this...
Archive
Stock market plunges to historic lows
Global stocks fell sharply yesterday after the banks’ attempts to support economic growth failed to dispel investors’ fears over the coronavirus impact on the...
Archive
European Central Bank ready for further stimulus
The European Central Bank will intervene in government bond markets if needed, Austrian central bank chief Robert Holzmann said today.
The announcement comes as the...
Archive
Global arms trade on the rise
In the last five years, the international transfer of major arms followed an increasing trend that was noted in a recently published report by...
Archive
EU, UK cancel face-to-face trade talks because of coronavirus
European Union negotiators cancelled next week’s visit to London for a second round of post-Brexit trade talks with the UK due to coronavirus concerns.
The...
Archive
EU's trade chief sees opportunity for "mini-deal" with the US
The European Union's Trade Chief Phil Hogan has said he is optimistic about coming to an agreement with the US on a “mini deal”...
Archive
Stock market plummets amid coronavirus fears
In just a few days, coronavirus cases have risen rapidly across the world, despite the World Health Organization saying the spread has slowed in...
Archive
Macron unsure of EU-UK deal by end of year
French president Emmanuel Macron has said he is not sure a UK-EU trade deal will be signed by the end of the post-Brexit transition...
Africa
Pompeo concludes Africa trip with a challenge to Chinese economic influence
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo capped his three-country visit to Africa where he pitched strengthening economic relations with the United States as the...
Archive
Spain moves forward with new digital tax on tech giants despite US warning
Spain’s government approved the introduction of new taxes on digital business and stock market transactions. The move has angered United States’ authorities and brought...
Archive
Britain tells EU that Supervision is ‘not acceptable’ in post-Brexit deal
The UK’s chief Brexit negotiator David Frost said during a visit to Brussels that the EU has totally missed the point of Britain's decision...
Archive
MEPs approve EU-Vietnam trade deal, despite human rights concerns
The European Parliament backed on Wednesday an EU trade deal with Vietnam which aims to eliminate almost all tariffs over the next ten years,...
Archive
Brussels chief Brexit negotiator slams UK PM for backlashing on EU rules
Michel Barnier, the EU's chief Brexit negotiator heavily criticised UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson for saying that he will not follow "high-alignment" EU rules...
Archive
Trump ready to negotiate 'very seriously' with EU on trade
US president Donald Trump said the time has come to pursue trade negotiations with the European Union.
“Europe has been treating us very badly”, Trump...
Archive
Coronavirus threatens EU-China investment deal
The EU Chamber of Commerce in China has warned that striking an EU-China investment deal in 2020 is under threat because of the coronavirus...
Analysis
EU and 16 WTO members agree on temporary body to settle disputes
The EU Commission announced that the European Union, together with 16 other countries, including China, agreed to establish a body to bypass the United...
Archive
Trump reiterates threat to impose tariffs on European cars
US president Donald Trump said he is serious about imposing tariffs on European cars unless the European Union agrees on a transatlantic deal.
Trump is...
Archive
Several European nations will introduce a digital tax if no OECD deal is reached
France, Italy, and Spain have said they would move ahead with their national digital tax if no international deal on digital taxation is reached...
Archive
Macron, Trump agree to hold off on a potential tariffs war
French president Emmanuel Macron said he had a “great discussion” with US president Donald Trump over France's planned digital tax.
“They agreed to give a...
Archive
EU to assess if US-China deal is compatible with WTO rules
The EU will assess whether the newly signed US-China Phase One deal is compatible with WTO rules. The deal opened a new, quieter phase...
Archive
European companies ask EU to toughen its approach to China
The business organization BusinessEurope complained that China was the most restrictive of the EU’s trading partners. The EU is China’s biggest trading partner.
The organisation...
Archive
Von der Leyen, Lagarde say 11 months is not enough for a EU-UK deal
The head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, warned that the timeframe for a deal defining the post-Brexit relationship with the EU...
Archive
Johnson to push for a swift post-Brexit trade deal with the EU
UK prime minister Boris Johnson was expected to tell EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, that Britain will not extend the post-Brexit transition...
Archive
Austria to reject Mercosur deal
The new Austrian government will not support the trade deal between the EU and South American nations.
The EU and the South American trade bloc...
Albania
Zaev-Mitsotakis Thessaloniki meeting explores EU Enlargement delays
The prime ministers of Greece and North Macedonia met on the sidelines of the Thessaloniki 2019 Summit on November 14. This was their second...
Albania
Tsipras visits Skopje hoping to cement his Prespes accomplishments
Greece’s Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras visited North Macedonia’s capital Skopje on 2 April, his second visit to the country since signing the Prespes Agreement. ...
Analysis
Name Dispute: Important issues progressing while public attention fades
While the Name Dispute between Greece and the newly-renamed Republic of North Macedonia has fallen out of the headlines, several notable developments occurred in...
Analysis
Name Dispute: Coming to terms
The Name Dispute has again fallen from the headlines in Northern Macedonia and Greece, as the public focus in Skopje is on April’s Presidential...
Analysis
Trump sends David Malpass to the World Bank
President Donald J Trump named David Malpass, currently US Treasury Undersecretary for International Affairs, as the US candidate for the Presidency of the World...
China
A revived role for the US in Northern Greece requires dynamic action and focus
As a former US diplomat who served as Consul General in Thessaloniki, it’s impossible not to become a lifelong booster of the Thessaloniki International...
Archive
Trump’s White House proclaims new (and maybe negotiable) tariffs to take effect in 15 days
US President Donald J. Trump signed a tariff proclamation March 8 at the White House, including a series of carefully-crafted exemptions for NAFTA partners...
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