By Beatrice Romano
Milan-based editor covering the eurozone, banking and the industrial heartlands of the continent.
Czechia caps fuel margins and trims diesel duty as pump prices bite
Czechia will cap fuel retailers' margins at 2.5 koruna per litre and cut diesel excise duty from 1 October. A temporary 50% levy will target
Brussels' local-content push could raise EV prices by €2,100, Bruegel warns
Bruegel argues that EU measures to shield carmakers, from tariffs to local-content rules, will raise EV prices and delay electrification. It
Swedish Study Links Rare Pregnancy Infections to Severe Intellectual Disability
Children born with TORCH infections—syphilis, rubella, cytomegalovirus and others—face a threefold higher risk of autism and up to 30 times
Uzbekistan's new Tashkent financial centre courts City of London legal expertise
Uzbekistan's Tashkent International Financial Centre will operate under English common-law principles with its own commercial court. Officia
Spain's rental housing draws record institutional capital as ownership stays opaque
Institutional investors committed €2.93bn to Spanish rental housing in the first half of 2026, already exceeding all of 2025. Brookfield's €
Europe's petrol tax league: the Netherlands takes the most, Latvia the least of the top ten
Taxes now account for 47.3% of the EU average petrol price, or €0.976 per litre. The Netherlands tops the ranking at €1.270 per litre, follo
Trump pushes Belarus potash deal to challenge Canadian market
US President Donald Trump announced a 'massive' potash deal with Belarus, claiming it would undercut Canadian prices. The move signals close
EU sends Ebola experts to DR Congo as vaccine trials begin
Two EU epidemiologists are deploying to the epicentre of the Ebola outbreak in DR Congo. Meanwhile, clinical trials of the Ervebo vaccine ha
ECB launches Pontes to settle tokenised assets in central bank money
The Eurosystem has launched Pontes, a settlement system for tokenised assets using central bank money. Thirteen institutions are onboarded,
Qatar rejects Hormuz bypass pipeline, unveils $60bn investment push
Qatar has dismissed a pipeline bypass for the Strait of Hormuz as economically unviable, citing duplication costs. The country also launched
Greece's stock market gains developed status in FTSE Russell shift
FTSE Russell and STOXX have reclassified Greece's stock market as developed, a milestone in its post-crisis recovery. The move could attract
Volkswagen's exit from Euro Stoxx 50 adds to its mounting troubles
Volkswagen has been removed from the Euro Stoxx 50, the eurozone's blue-chip index, as its market value fell below the threshold. The exit c