Europe

December 16, 2024 3:00 PM

Global markets wary of Fed rate plans, China retail disappoints

Shares around the world nudged lower on Monday on soft economic numbers from China and Europe and as surging bond yields challenged equity valuations, at the start of a week packed with central bank meetings and major economic data. Figures from China showed retail sales rose just 3.0% in November, compared with a year earlier, well below market forecasts of 4.6% and evidence of the need for much more aggressive stimulus. Industrial production was much as expected, while house prices were still...

October 15, 2024 4:05 PM

AI enhances flood warnings but cannot erase risk of disaster

When floods ripped through parts of Europe in September, the scale of the destruction took people by surprise. The intense rains should not have, because those had been predicted by sophisticated forecasting systems enhanced with artificial intelligence. But forewarned did not mean forearmed. Though the rains were accurately predicted, the effects in the deluged areas were not - a fact that highlights the difficulties of dealing with ever more common extreme weather. AI has supercharged weathe...

October 9, 2024 3:07 PM

Spanish olive trees find new home on Hungary’s slopes as climate warms

Wine maker Csaba Torok, who grows olives on Hungary's warm southern slopes near Lake Balaton, believes his trees from southern Europe have found a successful new home as Europe's climate gets warmer. Torok, 55, got his first three small olive trees from Spain around 2008. Two froze to death the first winter but one survived, prompting Torok to buy around 200 more over the years to plant in his vineyard on Hegymagas, a volcanic butte formation with sunny slopes, ample rain and rich soil. "I see...

July 5, 2024 3:16 PM

As Europe turns right, UK voters reject Conservative populism

The centre-left Labour Party's crushing victory in the British election stands in stark contrast to recent gains by the far right across Europe. But the party's triumph was not so much a rejection of populism by voters, but rather an echo of the same disenchantment with their political leaders. Keir Starmer swept to power on Friday winning a large parliamentary majority and condemning Rishi Sunak's Conservative Party to its worst defeat in history. The victory comes days after Marine Le Pen's...

June 17, 2024 6:20 PM

Europe must catch up in green tech race, Spain’s climate minister says

The next European Commission must do more to help European industry catch up in the green tech race with China and the U.S., said Spain's climate and energy minister Teresa Ribera, a front-runner to be the EU's next head of green policies. EU country leaders meet on Monday in Brussels to discuss the top jobs in the next European Commission, in which each of the 27 EU countries will have a member. Ribera, who Spain's government has put forward to seek a senior climate-related Commission pos...

June 7, 2024 4:56 PM

World food prices rise for third straight month in May, UN says

The United Nations World Food Price Index rose for a third consecutive month in May, as higher cereals and dairy product prices outweighed drops in prices for sugar and vegetable oils. The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization's price index, which tracks the most globally traded food commodities, averaged 120.4 points in May, up 0.9% from its revised April level, the FAO said on Friday. The May reading was nonetheless 3.4% below the level seen a year earlier. The FAO index hit a three-year l...

September 16, 2024 6:39 PM

India third-largest gold buyer in May, after Switzerland and China: WGC

The global gold market experienced a turnaround in May, ending a 12-month slump for gold exchange-traded funds (ETFs) with a resurgence in inflows. This positive momentum was driven by strong demand in Europe and Asia, despite minor outflows in North America. By the end of May, global gold ETF holdings had risen to 3,088 tonnes, with total assets under management (AUM) reaching $234 billion, a 2% increase for the month. Physically backed gold ETFs enjoyed a net inflow of $529 million, marking t...

May 30, 2024 7:49 PM

How China’s EV makers aim to beat Tesla, legacy automakers in Europe

Starting in the 1980s, European automakers steadily conquered China, racking up millions in sales with little local competition. Now they'll have to defend their home turf in Europe from an onslaught of formidable Chinese electric vehicles. Chinese EV titans, Chery and Great Wall Motor (GWM) are preparing a fusillade of product launches - about 20 over the next five years - and spending heavily on sales and marketing in their most important export market, according to Reuters interviews with 1...

May 29, 2024 4:19 PM

Once ostracised, Italy’s Meloni is now centre stage in Europe

When Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni took power in 2022, far-right parties across Europe hailed her victory, expecting the fiery new leader in Rome to pursue a nationalist agenda and battle the Brussels bureaucracy. But rather than clash with the European Union elites, Meloni surprised friend and foe alike by working closely with them, presenting herself as a bridge between the mainstream centre-right and her own arch-conservative camp, which was previously shunned. Her influence...

May 26, 2024 12:14 PM

Macron heads to Germany in first French presidential state visit in 24 years

French President Emanuel Macron lands in Germany on Sunday for a three-day state visit followed by a bilateral cabinet meeting as the European Union's two biggest powers seek to show unity ahead of next month's EU parliamentary elections. Macron's trip to the capital Berlin, Dresden in the east and Muenster in the west is the first French presidential state visit to Germany in 24 years. The visit will be watched as a checkup on the health of the German-French relationship that drives EU policy...