Member News, News, Trade & TTIP Related

Tradewind Finance | Non-Recourse vs Recourse Factoring: What Exporters Need to Know

Exporters selling internationally often face a difficult balance: offering competitive payment terms while protecting their business from non-payment risk. Factoring helps solve the cash flow challenge by advancing funds against unpaid invoices. However, exporters must choose between recourse factoring and non-recourse factoring. Understanding the difference is essential for managing financial risk in global trade. In a recourse factoring arrangement, the exporter remains responsible if the buyer fails to pay the invoice. Here is how it works: The exporter ships goods and issues an invoice. The factor advances...

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Member News, News

Loyens & Loeff | Tax at the Heart of EU Policymaking – Simplification, Digital Taxation and Financing EU Ambitions

While tax may not always sit at the forefront of public EU policymaking debates, developments over the past year point to a clear conclusion: 2026 is shaping up to be a pivotal year for EU tax policy, with implications that extend well beyond technical tax compliance. Ongoing discussions on simplification, the taxation of the digital economy and the financing of EU ambitions place taxation firmly at the intersection of policy design, competitiveness and fiscal stability. For companies operating across the...

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Chapter News, News

IMF | Industrial Policy Is Adapting to Crises, but Remains Hard to Implement Effectively

Blog | As governments intervene more, evidence shows that the benefits are modest and depend on thoughtful design. Industrial policy, the use of government interventions to support or develop specific firms and industries, has grown more popular in recent years—especially in response to crises. The war in the Middle East is the latest example, with high energy prices and geopolitical upheaval prompting action. In addition to economy-wide support measures, such as fuel price caps and reduced excise duties, at least 305...

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Chapter News, News

European Commission | Spring 2026 Economic Forecast: Slowdown in Growth as Energy Shock Drives Up Inflation

Executive summary Before the outbreak of the conflict in the Middle East, the global economy was gaining momentum. A challenging geopolitical environment and US tariff uncertainty continued to weigh on growth, but easing inflation and a robust investment cycle related to the unfolding AI revolution provided important support. The EU economy was likewise strengthening while inflationary pressures were further abating. Weak competitiveness was a source of concern and public finances required attention, but the economy also showed resilience, including a...

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Member News, News

Wilson Sonsini | Draft Guidelines Clarify Which AI Systems Are “High-Risk” Under EU AI Act

The European Commission has published draft guidelines (Draft Guidelines) to clarify the classification of high-risk AI systems under the European Union's Artificial Intelligence Act (EU AI Act). This classification is crucial, as it determines whether an AI system will be subject to the EU AI Act’s most burdensome obligations. The Draft Guidelines provide general principles which inform if an AI system is high-risk, as well as a non-exhaustive list of examples of high-risk AI systems across various sectors. Organizations can provide...

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Member News, News, Trade & TTIP Related

Jaguar Freight | Conspiracy, Crime and Containers

In this week’s Roar: Trans-Pacific rates hold steady, Europe’s negotiation with Iran, truckload rates jump, US indicts four Chinese container makers, and building an ethical beauty supply chain. Data shows Trans-Pacific ocean freight rates have remained mostly flat lately, even as the industry moves into the traditional peak shipping season. While rates on major Asia–U.S. lanes are still up significantly since late February, much of the increase has been driven by capacity being limited by carriers and geopolitics as opposed to market demand....

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Chapter News, News

ECB | How the War in the Middle East is Reshaping Euro Area Firms’ Expectations

Blog | The economic shock caused by the war between the United States and Iran has quickly fed into euro area firms’ expectations. Daily responses to an ECB survey show an immediate increase in expected input costs, selling prices and short-term inflation. Firms' expectations for costs, prices and the broader macroeconomic environment are central to their decisions on wages, investment and employment. These decisions, in turn, determine how economic shocks are transmitted to the economy. When a major geopolitical event occurs,...

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Chapter News, News, Trade & TTIP Related

World Bank | Trade and Development Chart: The Rise in Trade Policy Fragmentation

Blog | Data show that countries are increasingly applying different import tariffs to different trading partners for the same product. Click here to access the interactive chart Since the WTO was established in 1995, no new multilateral trade agreement has been reached on import tariffs. Instead, we see a rise in trade policy fragmentation. This is reflected in the chart, where the downward-sloping lines show that non-discriminatory, or Most Favored Nation, tariffs explain a declining share of tariff variation. In other words, countries...

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Chapter News, News, Trade & TTIP Related

European Council | Suspension of Customs Tariffs on Certain Fertilisers for One Year

The Council decided today to suspend for one year customs tariffs on key nitrogen-based fertilisers used in agricultural production in the EU, including fertiliser inputs such as urea and ammonia. The measure aims to lower costs for EU farmers and fertiliser industry – saving them an estimated €60 million in import duties, according to the European Commission. It will also reduce the EU's dependency on Russia and Belarus for fertiliser products and help build a more diversified trading network in this area. "Today’s...

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Member News, News

PwC | OECD Attempts to Address Global Minimum Tax Compliance Concerns in Advance of Filing and Exchange Deadlines

In brief What happened? On 18 May 2026 the OECD released a ‘common understanding’ of jurisdictions that implemented a QIIR and/or QDMTT for the 2024 reporting fiscal year, aiming to mitigate the impact of potential delays in the availability of fully operational GloBE Information Return (GIR) filing portals or exchange relationships for the Global Minimum Tax. Separately, the OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework on BEPS released agreed administrative guidance on the transitional UTPR safe harbour for certain 52/53-week fiscal year multinational enterprise (MNE)...

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