Press play to listen to this article Pushed by a looming energy crisis, cities across Europe are switching off the lights. While Spain has made such measures mandatory, ordering shops to turn their lights off at night, in other places local authorities are voluntarily hitting the switch, arguing it’s a good time to trial light-saving … Read more
Press play to listen to this article TUSCANY — Spending the whole of August at the coast is practically an Italian birth-right. But following the surprise collapse of Mario Draghi’s government in July, Italy is holding autumn elections for the first time in more than 100 years — leaving politicians with precious little time for … Read more
Press play to listen to this article With tensions flaring in East Asia, China’s sanctions against Taiwan are a stark reminder to the European Union how dependent it is on the island, and in particular the tiny computer chips it makes. China banned some trade with Taiwan in response to US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s … Read more
The European Commission’s antitrust enforcers are investigating Google’s app store rules, according to two people close to the matter. Google’s rivals have received confidential questionnaires from Brussels, probing billing terms and developer fees for the US tech giant’s Play Store, the two people, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said. An investigation in the Netherlands … Read more
Press play to listen to this article Tourism is back — and so is cities’ irritation with platform-driven tourism. For once, that ire is aimed not at the platforms themselves, but at Brussels. A long-awaited European Union rulebook on short-term rental platforms like Airbnb was pushed back over the summer — fueling the impatience of … Read more
Press play to listen to this article Italy’s smooth sailing is about to come to an end. A combination of factors – the “Super Mario” brand of its prime minister, negative interest rates and the chance to spend nearly € 200 billion in EU recovery funds – meant that the EU’s third largest economy was … Read more
Press play to listen to this article Italy’s smooth sailing is about to come to an end. A combination of factors – the “Super Mario” brand of its prime minister, negative interest rates and the chance to spend nearly € 200 billion in EU recovery funds – meant that the EU’s third largest economy was … Read more
Press play to listen to this article Top European planemaker Airbus has advanced technology sharing and manufacturing agreements with entities linked to China’s state-run military apparatus, a new report shows. The findings will beg questions about how long Europe’s aviation champion can continue to secure its strong market position in China with such local partnerships, … Read more
Press play to listen to this article Europe has deployed an unprecedented arsenal of economic sanctions against Moscow in an attempt to weaken Russia’s economy and force Vladimir Putin to abandon his war in Ukraine. But as the export bans bite over the coming months, Russia will start to crave banned goods that are essential … Read more
Press play to listen to this article Russian lobbyists are set to be banned from EU institutions following action by the EU Council. Nearly four months and six rounds of EU-level sanctions after Russia began its unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, lobbyists from companies including Gazprom, Lukoil and Rusal are in the process of losing their … Read more