By Pedro Baptista, Maarten Dossche, Andrew Hannon, Dorian Henricot, Omiros Kouvavas, Davide Malacrino and Larissa Zimmermann Despite recent ECB rate cuts, the average interest rate on mortgages is expected to increase further. This is because of lagged effects from the latest hiking cycle. The ECB blog shows that the resulting drag on consumption could last at least until 2030. Mortgage contracts often have interest rates fixed for long periods, or even for the entire duration of the contract. This implies that...

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Speech by Christine Lagarde, President of the ECB, at an event on Europe’s role in a fragmented world organised by Jacques Delors Centre at Hertie School in Berlin, Germany Over the past 80 years, the global economy thrived on a foundation of openness and multilateralism – underpinned by US leadership. By championing a rules-based international system and anchoring the dollar as the world’s reserve currency, the United States set the stage for trade to flourish and finance to expand. This global...

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Commissioner Ekaterina Zaharieva Ladies and Gentlemen, Today, the College has taken an important step to make Europe the best place for innovation. The best place to start, to scale, to stay. President von der Leyen made it clear when she presented the new College: Startups and scaleups are a top priority of this Commission. We are delivering on that promise. Our innovators don't just build companies. They create jobs. They turn ideas into solutions that improve and save lives. The good news is that we are not starting...

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Fiscal Policy under mounting uncertainty means government budgets need resilience—particularly in countries whose economic weight makes them influence global trends Blog post by Era Dabla-Norris, Davide Furceri | Global public debt could increase to 100 percent of global gross domestic product by the end of the decade if current trends continue, according to projections in our latest Fiscal Monitor. The rising ratio of public debt to GDP reflects renewed economic pressures as well as the consequences of pandemic-related fiscal support, according to...

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The European Commission welcomes today's agreement in the Council of the EU on the Security for Action for Europe (SAFE) Instrument. As proposed in the ReArm Europe Plan / Readiness 2030, the Commission will raise up to €150 billion on the capital markets, providing financial levers to EU Member States to ramp up the investments in key defence areas like air missile defence, drones, or strategic enablers. Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission said: “Exceptional times require exceptional measures. I welcome today's...

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The Council adopted today its negotiating position (general approach) on one of the proposals of the so-called ‘Omnibus I’ legislative package, which simplifies and strengthens the EU’s carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM). The proposal seeks to provide simplification and cost-efficient compliance improvements to the CBAM regulation, without compromising its climate goals, as about 99% of embedded emissions in the imported CBAM goods would remain covered. The overall aim is to reduce the regulatory and administrative burden, as well as compliance...

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Countries must urgently address policies that are driving the continued expansion of steel excess capacity to prevent further erosion of market stability and fair competition in the steel industry, according to a new OECD report. The OECD Steel Outlook 2025 shows that excess capacity is projected to rise to 721 million metric tonnes (mmt) by 2027, exceeding by around 290 mmt the combined steel production of OECD countries in 2024. This surge is being driven by continued capacity expansion, despite weak growth...

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Today, the European Commission has taken further steps to support the EU's transition to a low-carbon economy. Four new pieces of secondary legislation and a communication relating to the Net-Zero Industry Act (NZIA) will help the EU's industry to become more resilient, competitive and reduce their carbon footprint. These rules clarify which manufacturing projects can benefit from specific provisions in the Act, such as on permitting, strategic project status and on non-price criteria. They will help scale up the manufacturing of net-zero technologies that reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and leverage the competitive advantage of the EU's clean tech industry.  The Commission has today adopted the following acts:   Components primarily used for net-zero technologies under the NZIA   The...

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The EU’s single market gives businesses access to 450 million consumers. It is the first driver of our competitiveness and the second largest global market. But its rules and regulations can be complex and create barriers to entry and growth. In a bid to create a more simple and strong European home market, the European Commission has introduced a new strategy to simplify rules and reduce bureaucracy.   The new measures will boost growth opportunities for businesses and provide even higher...

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