Author: Euronews

The European Union might soon add an additional €64.5 billion to its common budget. But it comes with fine print. ADVERTISEMENTThe top-up was for months the object of fierce bargaining among member states, each of whom, mindful of the upcoming elections to the European Parliament, pushed hard to see their wish list come true.The negotiations kicked off in June, soon after the European Commission unveiled its proposal, and culminated in an extraordinary summit on 1 February, where Viktor Orbán, under tremendous pressure from his fellow leaders, lifted his monthlong veto.”We had certainly some difficult choices to make, but we had a…

There is a large income inequality in Europe. Western and Nordic states have higher disposable income on average compared to many southern and eastern countries. ADVERTISEMENTTwo thirds of the world’s most properous countries in the world are in Europe, according to the 2023 Legatum Prosperity Index, yet income inequality is rife across the old continent. The average household income set aside for spending and saving varies considerably, not just between EU member states, but other European countries too.There appears to be a clear geographic divide: The highest levels of median disposable income were recorded in western and Nordic countries, while levels…

The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not represent in any way the editorial position of Euronews. The DSA’s first signs of impact are becoming visible, but what is stopping big tech from treating everyone who uses their services fairly and equitably, Claire Pershan, Odanga Madung and Kiito Shilongo write. ADVERTISEMENTEU policymakers often tout the Brussels effect — Europe’s regulatory influence and market power around the world — as a force to exert global change. But as its platform accountability rulebook, the Digital Services Act, comes into full force on 17 February, many effects seem unlikely to spill over…

It’s not acceptable for a CEO to simply say, ‘Well, I don’t do marketing,’ says Ed Fidoe. That’s why he is leading at a groundbreaking university aimed at cultivating well-rounded leaders. ADVERTISEMENTFidoe is one of the minds behind the UK’s first new university with degree-granting powers since the 1960s—the London Interdisciplinary School (LIS).He argues that specialising alone will fall short in a world grappling with intricate challenges like climate change and AI; instead, one must embrace interdisciplinary studies.My Wildest Prediction is a podcast series from Euronews Business where we dare to imagine the future with business and tech visionaries. In…

The European Commission proposed on Wednesday to extend free trade with Ukraine until June 2025, but with a new tweak to enable the type of national restrictions that Kyiv has complained about. ADVERTISEMENTThe U-turn means that if one or several member states face a glut of Ukrainian agricultural products, Brussels could give the green light to limit the sale and storage of these products inside the affected country. An all-out ban will also be possible, as the proposed law has been deliberately drafted in open-ended terms.The so-called “remedial measures” will have to be backed by economic evidence, which is prone…

Demand for obesity drugs has pushed Novo Nordisk’s share price to new highs. ADVERTISEMENTThe rush on weight loss drugs has sent Danish drugmaker Novo Nordisk’s market value to new records as its share price has also soared rapidly after Europe’s biggest company posted better-than-expected results in its latest earnings report.The firm behind weight loss drug Wegovy and diabetes drug Ozempic has reported that its sales increased by 31% and its net profit surged by 51% in 2023 compared to the previous year (both in Danish kroner).Growth was driven by Novo’s obesity care sales which jumped by 154% compared to the…

The EU executive assists French President Emmanuel Macron proposing a partial derogation to the green architecture for farming subsidies – a key demand of farmers causing unrest in France. ADVERTISEMENTThe European Commission today (31 January) proposed loosening green farming requirements under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) while maintaining the full level of payments for farmers, answering French farmers’ concerns that the rules lead to income losses.“By taking this stabilising action, we can help alleviate the pressure that we know our farmers are feeling to ensure that they can stay economically viable during these times of high uncertainty,” said Commission Executive…

The price of an average house in the UK increased further in January, at the swiftest rate since October, according to mortgage provider Nationwide. ADVERTISEMENTBritish house prices climbed by 0.7% month on month in January, with a yearly decline of just 0.2%, according to the latest figures from mortgage lender Nationwide Building Society.”UK house prices rose by 0.7% in January, after taking account of seasonal effects. This resulted in an improvement in the annual rate of house price growth from -1.8% in December to -0.2% in January, the strongest out-turn since January 2023,” Nationwide chief economist Robert Gardner said commenting…

A European Union naval mission to protect commercial shipping in the Red Sea from missile attacks by Houthi rebels in Yemen is expected to be launched on February 19, the bloc’s top diplomat announced on Wednesday. ADVERTISEMENT”Maritime security in the Red Sea has significantly deteriorated over the last weeks and we are very much advancing the work of a new maritime operation in order to act in a purely defensive mode to protect merchant vessels,” Josep Borrell confirmed after an informal meeting of defence ministers in Brussels.”Our goal is to establish and launch this mission, Aspides, at the latest on the…

Euronews takes a deeper look at the farmer protests taking place in Germany, France, Romania, the Netherlands and Belgium – and explores how much it could cost Europe. ADVERTISEMENTIn order to put the current protests taking place across Europe into context, it is important to understand where it all started.The history of the current protests can be traced back to the Green Deal (2019) which involved significant alterations to achieve climate neutrality. The purpose of the deal was to decarbonise and digitalise Europe’s economy. It suggested some serious alterations of policies with an objective to achieve climate neutrality by 2050. However,…