European Union

Sheriffs take overdue ride into ESG wild west

15 Dec 2020

French and Dutch regulators have called for greater oversight of ratings and products that gauge companies’ green credentials. Nailing down a coherent approach will be tricky. But the breakneck growth of sustainable investing makes clearer ground rules critical.

Christine Lagarde’s baby bazooka needs backup

10 Dec 2020

The ECB boss will deploy emergency stimulus measures, such as asset buying and ultra-cheap loans to banks, for longer but came up with no new tricks to boost Europe’s economy. Central bankers have been innovative in the crisis. It’s now governments’ turn to do more of the work.

Judge Europe’s tech push in 2030, not 2020

8 Dec 2020

The bloc’s startups will raise $41 bln this year, venture firm Atomico reckons. It’s a fraction of America’s haul, and the region’s companies are still tiny by U.S. standards. Europe’s share of early-stage fundraising, however, is huge. That augurs very well for the future.

Chatty ECB has a communications problem

2 Dec 2020

Chief Economist Philip Lane has since March spoken with a series of financiers after policy meetings, his diary shows. A perception that a select few have privileged access is best avoided. The even bigger issue is why the central bank has to work so hard to land its message.

Corona Capital: Scotland, EU impasse, Amazon

27 Nov 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Scottish independence gets a viral shot in the arm; Poland and Hungary take a united stand on the European Union’s recovery fund; and the online retail giant delivers a modicum of Christmas cheer to workers.

Corona Capital: U.S. airlines

20 Nov 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: The CDC issued a warning to Americans not to travel over the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday as Covid-19 cases surge. Airlines, once again, are going hat-in-hand to Washington.

ECB has chance to avoid Fed’s strategy revamp flaw

12 Nov 2020

Christine Lagarde’s central bank is examining basics, like how it defines its price goal. Its U.S. peer earlier this year switched to aiming for inflation that averages 2% over time. But leaving things as vague as Jerome Powell did undermines efforts to lift price expectations.

Jeff Bezos and Margrethe Vestager can get along

10 Nov 2020

The Amazon CEO may balk at charges from Europe’s antitrust tsar that his company distorts retail competition. Possible remedies, like sharing data or erecting internal firewalls, will hurt. Still, Vestager is trying to cope with Amazon’s dominance, not end it. That’s something.

Guest view: Five ways to hit Europe’s green goals

9 Oct 2020

The EU’s aim to cut 2030 carbon emissions by 55% is ambitious. It means more renewables, less coal, and new thinking on energy demand and efficiency. Meanwhile, notes Energy Commissioner Kadri Simson, the extra 350 bln euros it will cost annually will require private sector help.

European Union will be bond market’s new behemoth

7 Oct 2020

The need to fund pandemic aid schemes worth nearly 1 trillion euros will make the EU one of the region’s largest issuers. ECB bond buying and investors’ hunger for safe assets mean that is no problem. And the scale of issuance will make its debt more liquid, a prized quality.

Christine Lagarde has a real rates problem

2 Oct 2020

Euro zone prices fell 0.3% in September from a year ago, a bigger drop than in August. This boosts the inflation-adjusted, or real, policy rate. That phenomenon is most marked on the ECB boss’s turf and may lift the euro. A rising currency would hasten further monetary easing.

Swiss vote reinforces EU’s tough Brexit stance

28 Sep 2020

The Alpine nation reversed its opposition to EU immigration in a referendum, avoiding a messy standoff with its top export market. Broad economic concerns trumped popular angst. As negotiations with the United Kingdom intensify, the outcome will encourage Brussels to stand firm.

Apple fight is just one front in Europe’s tax war

25 Sep 2020

Antitrust tsar Margrethe Vestager will appeal a court ruling nullifying demands the tech giant pay Ireland $15 bln of back taxes. It’s time-consuming and possibly futile. With Covid-19 inflating government deficits, political pressure on low-tax states may be more fruitful.

How to build a European JPMorgan

25 Sep 2020

An EU bank of the U.S. behemoth’s size could help ensure reliable corporate funding and more tech investment. Fragmented liquidity, capital and bankruptcy rules make the necessary mega-deals hard. Though the ECB is helping, it’s really up to national regulators and politicians.

Corona Capital: Playboy, Mondelez

21 Sep 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: The owner of perhaps the most famous adult magazine is hoping a SPAC can give it a new lease on life; Mondelez wants to expand its range of healthy snacks – but they’re not always the best money spinners.

Brexit brinkmanship revives risk of worst outcome

7 Sep 2020

Talks with the European Union over a trade deal are at an impasse. Now Boris Johnson’s government is planning legislation which would undermine the prime minister’s exit agreement, the FT says. It may be a negotiating ploy. Even so, it means a chaotic Brexit is back on the table.

Ireland’s Golfgate can reveal a more responsive EU

24 Aug 2020

The Irish public are outraged about an elite golf jolly that flouted Covid-19 restrictions. One minister has resigned and European Commissioner Phil Hogan is under severe pressure. A swift departure would help Brussels look less like a technocratic refuge from popular politics.

Alstom can drive a hard bargain on Bombardier

10 Aug 2020

The French train maker hinted it will reassess an $8.2 bln buyout of its Canadian rival’s unit following surprise losses. A 20% price cut would allow CEO Henri Poupart-Lafarge to make an economic return. EU consent for a deal and Bombardier’s high debts strengthen his hand.

Euro moves a step closer to becoming a safe haven

22 Jul 2020

The EU’s 750 bln euro fund makes the bloc more resilient and creates easily traded common bonds, boosting the single currency’s appeal. Yet political splits are only patched up. It may take new crises to fix them. Only then will the euro stand a chance of supplanting the dollar.

EU deal offers model for future crises

21 Jul 2020

The bloc agreed to 750 bln euros of grants and loans backed by common funds to help pandemic-hit member states. Despite some concessions on size, the plan looks workable and creates incentives for reform. Europe has moved on from its messy handling of the euro zone debt crunch.