Western Europe

ADNOC, the state-owned oil company of Abu Dhabi, requested approval from the EU on Thursday under the rules on foreign subsidies for its $16.4 billion acquisition of German chemicals firm Covestro. The request was made on the website of the European Commission. ADNOC's largest acquisition ever, for which it received the green light last week under EU merger regulations, demonstrates the Middle East countries diversification of investments in order to reduce their dependence upon oil. The EU's Foreign Subsidies Regulations (FSR) target unfair foreign aid to companies in order to reduce the competition from non EU companies that are subsidised...

Statistics Norway (SSB), on Thursday, released data showing that the Norwegian economy's growth was faster than expected in the first quarter 2025. In the January-March timeframe, mainland GDP increased by 1.0% in comparison to October-December. The economists polled had predicted a growth of 0.6%. The Norwegian crown currency rose against the Euro to 11,62 at 0609 GMT, from 11,63 before the release of data. spring budget proposal The central bank of Norway had predicted that the economy on the Norwegian mainland would grow by 0.6% during the first quarter, compared to the last three months in 2024 when it contracted...

The government announced on Thursday that it would invest 630 millions pounds ($838million) in the installation of solar panels, heat pumps, and other clean energy technologies on public buildings such as schools, community centers, and care homes. The government announced the move as many sectors struggle with high energy costs and to reach climate targets. In a press statement, the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero stated that the investments would lead to energy cost savings of approximately 650 million pounds per year in the average over the next twelve years. In a government press release, Louise Shooter said,...

The Italian tyremaker Pirelli announced on Wednesday that the talks to repair relations with Sinochem, its largest shareholder in China, ended without any breakthrough. Pirelli, and its second-largest shareholder, Italy's Camfin have claimed that Sinochem's stake in the company is hindering Pirelli's ambitions for expansion in the United States. Some lawmakers there are against projects backed by Chinese firms. Pirelli stated in April that Sinochem no longer controls the company because of the Italian government's decision to "golden power" the company by 2023. Sinochem, however, denied this claim. Pirelli announced on Wednesday that "the proposals extended to Sinochem by Pirelli...

The Italian tyremaker Pirelli announced on Wednesday that the talks to repair relations with Sinochem, its largest shareholder in China, ended without any breakthrough. Pirelli, and its second-largest shareholder, Italy's Camfin have claimed that Sinochem's stake in the company is hindering Pirelli's ambitions for expansion in the United States. Some lawmakers there are against projects backed by Chinese firms. Pirelli stated in April that Sinochem no longer controls the company because of the Italian government's decision to "golden power" the company by 2023. Sinochem, however, denied this claim. Pirelli announced on Wednesday that "the proposals extended to Sinochem by Pirelli...

What are the possible contours of a peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine? SECURITY GUARANTEE Ukraine, which has been subjected to a full scale invasion in 2022, and witnessed Russia annex Crimea, needs security guarantees from major powers, primarily the United States. The Budapest Memorandum of 1994, in which the U.S., Russia and Britain agreed to refrain from using force against Ukraine and respect Ukrainian sovereignty was not enough for the Ukrainian government. The powers agreed to take the matter to the United Nations Security Council in the event of an attack on Ukraine. Sources involved in the talks say...

A senior executive from Germany's Uniper utility said that gas prices of around 25 euros ($28.13), compared with 34 euros at present, may be required to stimulate future investment in the European Economy. Gas prices reached a peak of nearly 350 euros per Megawatt Hour (MWh) in 2022. Since then, dozens of companies across Europe have shut down factories and reduced activity and job opportunities as high gas costs undermined their ability to compete. Carsten Poppinga said, "I am optimistic that gas prices of around 25 (euros/MWH), might stimulate some investments in the European Economy going forward if you can...

TotalEnergies announced on Wednesday that it has signed an agreement with Norwegian investment company HitecVision to sell 50% of Polish producer Polska Grupa Biogazowa. The French energy company stated that the agreement represents a value of 213.6 million euros (190 million Euros). Stephane Michel, TotalEnergies' President of Gas, Renewables & Power, said that the deal would help Polska Grupa Biogazowa continue its growth in Poland, where biogas development is booming. Erlend Elliottsen, CEO of HitecVision and Managing Director, said that the companies have complementary skills which they will use to "scale" PGB in the coming years, through greenfield projects, as...

In the face of U.S. competitors, two of Europe's largest stock exchange operators have stepped up their efforts to keep local initial public offering companies. Marketing and research are challenging the perception that New York listed companies command higher valuations. The stock exchanges of Europe and the UK were hit by a lack of IPOs during the last two years. A number of local companies have chosen to float in the U.S. because of its larger pools of capital, and higher valuations. Deutsche Boerse (which operates the Frankfurt Stock Exchange) warns of sluggish post IPO performance, increased costs, and the...

In the face of U.S. competitors, two of Europe's largest stock exchange operators have stepped up their efforts to keep local IPOs. Marketing and research are challenging the perception that New York listed companies command higher valuations. The stock exchanges of Europe and the UK were hit by a lack of IPOs during the last two years. A number of local companies have chosen to float in the U.S. because of its larger pools of capital, and higher valuations. Deutsche Boerse (which operates the Frankfurt Stock Exchange) warns of sluggish post IPO performance, increased costs, and the threat litigation for...

British stocks finished mixed on Tuesday as investors weighed a slight increase in U.S. Inflation data while signs of a slowing UK labour market fueled speculation about the Bank of England’s future rate decisions. The blue-chip FTSE 100 index was almost flat, but the domestically focused midcaps index rose 0.6%. Consumer prices in the United States rebounded modestly in April. They rose 0.2%, after a dip of 0.1% in March. The inflation rate is expected to increase in the coming months, as tariffs will raise import costs. After the report, traders bet that the Federal Reserve will delay lowering interest...

The England & Wales Cricket Board has not selected Phil Salt for the upcoming home white-ball series against West Indies. Will Jacks, a batting all-rounder, has been recalled to the England squads that will face West Indies in three ODIs (over 20-overs) and three T20s between May 29 and July 10. Harry Brook, the white-ball captain, is leading both teams. Luke Wood and Tom Hartley have both returned to England's T20 and ODI teams, respectively, after not playing white-ball cricket since September 2023. Jacks was playing in the Indian Premier League along with Jos buttler, Jacob Bethell and Jamie Overton,...

Gold prices fell on Friday, and were set to experience their biggest weekly drop in six months as a stronger US dollar and diminishing trade war fears dampened its appeal. As of 0222 GMT, spot gold was down 0.5% at $3,223.06 per ounce. Bullion is down about 3% this week, and it's on track to have its worst performance weekly since November 2024. U.S. Gold Futures fell 0.1% to $3.224.90. Gold priced in greenbacks is now more expensive to overseas buyers due to the dollar's 0.3% gain for the past week. Ilya Spirak, global macro head at Tastylive, said that...

Ferrexpo, a Ukrainian miner with a focus on Ukraine, said that the Commercial Court of Poltava accepted a request to open bankruptcy proceedings of Ferrexpo Poltava Mining. Ferrexpo shares dropped 6.6% to 65p after the announcement. The company stated that while the application was accepted, formal bankruptcy proceedings have not yet been initiated against the unit. The court has set a preliminary court hearing on May 27 to consider the bankruptcy petition. Ferrexpo has been involved in legal disputes with Ukraine since 2022 when its controlling shareholder Ukrainian billionaire Kostiantyn Zhevago was arrested for embezzlement charges and his involvement in...

Copper and other base materials fell on Thursday, as the optimism over a 90 day pause on most retaliatory duties agreed between Beijing and Washington began to fade. By 0949 GMT, the benchmark copper price on London Metal Exchange (LME), fell by 1.1% to $9.502.50 per metric ton. On Wednesday, the metal used in construction and power had grown five times before, and reached $9,664, which was its highest price since April 2. Ole Hansen is the head of commodity strategy for Saxo Bank. He said that industrial metals are now aware of the damage done to both the U.S....

Prices for most base metals fell in London on Thursday, as the temporary truce between U.S. and China tariffs prompted caution. There were also concerns over a possible global recession that could affect metals demand. The benchmark copper price on the London Metal Exchange fell by 0.8% at 0416 GMT to $9,532 per metric ton. The Commerce Ministry said that China has halted non-tariff actions taken against 17 U.S. entities on its list of unreliable entities and 28 U.S. companies on its Export Control List. Both countries agreed to lower the tit for tat tariffs, and to implement a 90...

Gold prices fell to a record low of over one month on Thursday, ahead of an important U.S. report that is expected provide clues about the Federal Reserve's policy direction. A thaw between U.S. and China trade tensions also contributed to gold's decline. Gold spot fell by 0.8%, to $3,153.09 per ounce at 0303 GMT. It had earlier reached its lowest price since April 10 during the session. U.S. Gold Futures fell 1% to $3156.90. The United States agreed to drastically reduce tariffs and adopt a 90-day suspension, de-escalating the potentially damaging trade conflict between two of the largest economies...

The price of most base metals fell in London on Thursday as the U.S. - China tariff truce sparked uncertainty about various trade deals. The benchmark copper price on the London Metal Exchange fell by 0.6% at 0146 GMT to $9,533 per metric ton. The Commerce Ministry said that China has halted non-tariff actions taken against 17 U.S. entities on its list of unreliable entities and 28 U.S. companies on its Export Control List. Both countries agreed to lower the tit for tat tariffs, and to implement a 90 day pause in action. Washington also said that it would reduce...

Holcim's shareholders approved Wednesday the separation and spin-off of its North American business, a move designed to take advantage of increased construction spending in the United States. Almost all shareholders supported the decision to separate the company into two companies, Amrize and Holcim, which will focus on North America. Holcim will provide building materials for the remainder of the world. The spin-off should be complete by the end June. The listing will be done via a 100% share spin-off for Holcim's shareholders. The new company stock will trade on the New York Stock Exchange, and also on the Six Swiss...

Investor caution continued despite a temporary pause to the U.S. China trade dispute, which has weighed heavily on the global economic and financial markets. As of 0157 GMT, the benchmark copper price on London Metal Exchange (LME), was $9,598 per metric ton. U.S. president Donald Trump said Tuesday that he would be willing to deal directly with Chinese president Xi Jinping in order to finalize details of a U.S. China trade agreement. Washington announced that it would cut the "de minimis tariff" for low-value shipments coming from China down to 30%. This will further de-escalate a potential damaging trade war....

The gold price fell on Wednesday, as the de-escalation of U.S. China trade tensions dampened safe-haven demand. Meanwhile, markets waited for another set inflation data in order to gauge the Federal Reserve’s policy direction. As of 0231 GMT, spot gold was down 0.4% at $3,234.32. U.S. Gold Futures fell 0.3% to $3237.00. Kyle Rodda, Capital.com financial analyst and expert on the gold market, said that positive developments in US trade policies are reducing the appeal of the metal in the short term. "I believe that if there is continued progress made in the trade negotiations and agreements between the US,...

The Trade Remedies Authority of Britain (TRA) suggested on Tuesday that country specific quotas should be imposed for certain categories steel imports in order to protect its domestic industry. Since the beginning of the year, Britain has tried to protect its domestic steel industry from an oversupply in the world. It has also extended safeguards on the domestic market and has maintained anti-dumping restrictions for some imports. According to the latest recommendation of TRA, quotas will be implemented in October 2010 and limit how much steel certain countries can import duty-free. Nick Baird, TRA Chair said that the recommendations will...

The latest earnings estimates showed that the outlook for European corporate health is improving. According to data from LSEG, European companies will report an average increase of 1.9% for their first quarter earnings. This is better than the 0.4% analysts had predicted a week earlier. This improvement comes after 59.6% STOXX600 companies have already exceeded analyst expectations in the first quarter. LSEG data shows that at the time of Donald Trump's inauguration, in January, forecasts called for a 3.5% rise in earnings for the first quarter. However, this was reversed following Trump's announcements on tariffs in April, with expectations of...

The European aluminium industry is expecting the European Union to introduce export tariffs for aluminium scrap in order to protect the recycling sector from the outflow of Europeans, Emilio Braghi said, President of Novelis Europe on Tuesday. After the U.S. introduced a 25% tariff on aluminum imports earlier this year, but excluded scrap aluminium from the tariff, the outflow of scrap aluminium from the EU increased. Scrap was exported to the U.S. in order to be recycled. The recycling industry's margins were affected by the rise in the price of aluminum scrap due to the outflows from Europe to the...