Chapter News

Chapter News, Trade & TTIP Related

Former Ambassadors Support TTIP, TPA In Letter To Congressional Leadership

  "As senior officials in the transatlantic relationship, former US Ambassadors to European countries, the European Union, and NATO who served under Republican and Democratic administrations, each of us has witnessed first-hand the tremendous diplomatic, economic, and security benefits that transatlantic relations bring the United States." - 17 former US Ambassadors In their letter to Congress, the former Ambassadors urge the lawmakers to pass the new TPA bill and push for a quick and successful completion of TTIP. The Ambassadors argue...

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Chapter News, Trade & TTIP Related

European Commission: TTIP Round 9 – Final Day

“This week we have also stepped up our work in the rules area. We consider that an important element of TTIP should be the development of rules, not only to govern our bilateral trade relationship, but also to contribute to global rules and standards in areas such as competition, energy and raw materials or sustainable development, to name a few.” – EU Chief Negotiator Ignacio Garcia Bercero The Chief Negotiator for the European Union, Ignacio Garcia Bercero, outlined the...

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Chapter News, Trade & TTIP Related

European Commission: TTIP Round 9 – Final Day Press Conference

"This week we have also stepped up our work in the rules area. We consider that an important element of TTIP should be the development of rules, not only to govern our bilateral trade relationship, but also to contribute to global rules and standards in areas such as competition, energy and raw materials or sustainable development, to name a few." - EU Chief Negotiator Ignacio Garcia Bercero   The Chief Negotiator for the European Union, Ignacio Garcia Bercero, outlined...

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Chapter News

EU Commission takes steps to strengthen EU cooperation in the fight against terrorism, organised crime and cybercrime

Strasbourg, 28 April 2015 -- Today the European Commission set out a European Agenda on Security for the period 2015-2020 to support Member States' cooperation in tackling security threats and step up our common efforts in the fight against terrorism, organised crime and cybercrime. The Agenda sets out the concrete tools and measures which will be used in this joint work to ensure security and tackle these three most pressing threats more effectively. The recent terrorist attacks on Europe's people...

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Financial integration and macro-prudential policy

Speech by Vítor Constâncio, Vice-President of the ECB, at the joint conference organised by the European Commission and the European Central Bank “European Financial Integration and Stability”, 27 April 2015 Ladies and Gentlemen, The financial and sovereign crises have markedly changed our understanding of financial interactions in the Economic and Monetary Union. We have experienced how quickly apparent integration among Member States can unravel and how it can pose a threat to economic activity, job creation and price stability. The degree of...

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Financial integration in Europe rebounds, ECB report finds

Financial integration in the euro area has improved steadily and has reached a level close to that before the sovereign debt crisis Establishment of Banking Union and unconventional monetary policy actions taken by the ECB are major drivers of the improvement Financial integration is crucial for restoring efficient credit flows to the real economy Overall, financial integration in Europe has returned to a level close to that recorded before the sovereign debt crisis, the European Central Bank (ECB) said today in a...

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European Commission contributes EUR 295 million in additional resources to the Neighbourhood Investment Facility

Brussels, 24 April 2015 -- The Neighbourhood Investment Facility brings additional investments in transport, energy and environment infrastructure, including climate change mitigation and adaptation, and to the development of social and private sectors in Eastern and Southern Partner Countries. The European Commission decided to contribute an additional EUR 295.04 million to the Facility in 2015 to enable more than EUR 3 billion in investments. The Neighbourhood Investment Facility (NIF) is an instrument which combines EU grants with other public and...

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Fourth quarter of 2014 Seasonally adjusted government deficit up to 2.4% of GDP in the euro area Deficit down to 2.6% of GDP in the EU28

In the fourth quarter of 2014, the seasonally adjusted general government deficit to GDP ratio stood at 2.4% in the euro area (EA19), an increase compared with 2.2% in the third quarter of 2014. In the EU28, the deficit to GDP ratio stood at 2.6%, a decrease compared with 2.8% in the previous quarter. Full text available on EUROSTAT website or here: http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/products-press-releases/-/2-23042015-AP

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Chapter News, Trade & TTIP Related

EU Commission report shows that SMEs stand to make significant gains from the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) between the EU and the US

Brussels, 20 April 2015 -- The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) has significant potential for small and medium sized enterprises, according to a report released in Brussels today. It presents the results of a survey of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) carried out in 2014 on challenges they face when exporting to the United States. It also uses newly available data to look at the scale of exports by EU SMEs to the United States. Cecilia Malmström, European Commissioner...

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IMF Review Weighs How to Harness Trade for Growth

Amid concerns over a “new mediocre” in the global economy, trade should be seen as an integral part of the plan for increasing global growth over the medium term, a new IMF report says.  In its regular five-year review of trade, the IMF takes stock of the changes in the trade landscape and discusses key issues for the institution’s future work agenda.  A revival of trade growth, which has been slowing in recent years, has the potential to significantly impact growth...

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