The tenth European Union (EU) – United States Energy Council (“Council”) met today in Brussels, chaired by EU High Representative/Vice President Josep Borrell Fontelles, European Energy Commissioner Kadri Simson, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and US Deputy Secretary of Energy David M. Turk. Minister Tobias Billström of the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs represented the Presidency of the Council of the European Union. The EU-US Energy Council is the lead transatlantic coordination forum on strategic energy issues...

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I want to debrief you on a comprehensive day of high-level discussions we had today here in Beijing. I met with President Xi, both in a joint meeting with President Emmanuel Macron and then in a bilateral meeting. I also had a meeting with Prime Minister Li. Let me start with EU-China relations. It is an extensive and complex relationship that we have. For both of us, this relationship has a significant impact on our prosperity and our security. For...

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Rising tensions could trigger cross-border capital outflows and increased uncertainty that would threaten macro-financial stability Concerns about global economic and financial fragmentation have intensified in recent years amid rising geopolitical tensions, strained ties between the United States and China, and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Financial fragmentation has important implications for global financial stability by affecting cross-border investment, international payment systems, and asset prices. This in turn fuels instability by increasing banks’ funding costs, lowering their profitability, and reducing their lending to...

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A message from Howard Daniel, Chairman of EACC-Carolinas | 3 April, 2023 | It is with mixed emotions that we announce Mariana Simoes Marques's departure from her position as Executive Director of EACC-Carolinas. Mariana and her family will be relocating soon to Charlotte and as a result, she will be stepping back from her role. Mariana achieved much during her time with EACC-C. Her drive, efficiency, and ebullient personality will be missed. Mariana’s departing achievement was recruiting her successor. We...

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Interview with Fabio Panetta, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB, published as an article by Eshe Nelson entitled “Are Big Profits Keeping Prices High? Some Central Bankers Are Concerned.” in The New York Times, 31 March 2023 | After months of fretting about whether workers’ rising pay would keep inflation uncomfortably high, central bankers in Europe have another concern: large company profits. Companies that push up their prices above and beyond what is necessary to absorb higher costs could be fueling...

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The Council and the Parliament negotiators today reached a provisional political agreement to raise the share of renewable energy in the EU’s overall energy consumption to 42.5% by 2030 with an additional 2.5% indicative top up that would allow to reach 45%. Each member state will contribute to this common target. This provisional political agreement will now need to be endorsed by both institutions. The Council and Parliament negotiators provisionally agreed on more ambitious sector-specific targets in transport, industry, buildings and...

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Today, the European Commission adopted a proposal for a Directive making it easier for companies to expand the use of digital tools and processes in EU company law. The proposal aims to facilitate cross-border companies' operations and to increase business transparency and trust by making more information about companies publicly available at EU level. It will also cut red tape for cross-border businesses, saving around €‎437 million of administrative burden per year, thanks to an EU Company Certificate or...

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Interview with Philip R. Lane, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB, conducted on 22 March by Kolja Rudzio | 29 March 2023 | In recent weeks, banks have collapsed in the US and Switzerland. Could the same happen in the eurozone? Let me first strongly emphasise that what we’re seeing in the euro area in terms of tensions is a spillover from the US and from Switzerland. And please remember that we had a severe banking crisis in the...

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In 2022 the ECB conducted a climate risk stress test of the Eurosystem balance sheet as part of its action plan to include climate change considerations in its monetary policy strategy. The aims of this exercise were to (i) analyse the sensitivity of the Eurosystem’s financial risk profile to climate change; and (ii) enhance the Eurosystem’s climate risk assessment capabilities. The scope of the exercise covered a number of the Eurosystem’s monetary policy portfolios, namely its holdings of corporate...

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