Economy

The European Union is preparing to enforce new equal pay regulations requiring employers to enhance transparency and address gender wage gaps, with legal experts outlining a seven-step compliance plan for businesses.

The European Commission’s proposed 28th company-law regime, dubbed EU Inc, aims to give startups a single pan-European legal form and cut cross-border scaling costs. As part of the post-Draghi competitiveness agenda, it promises a unified market entry across 27 states but raises concerns over labour standards and national co-determination.

Markets are positioned for the European Central Bank to raise its deposit rate by 25 basis points to 2.25% on 11 June 2026, the first move after five consecutive holds since July 2025. A Reuters poll found 59 of 70 economists expect a hike, driven by an energy-led rise in euro-area inflation to 3.0%.

Brent crude jumped close to 6% to around $97 a barrel on Monday 1 June 2026 after Iranian agency Tasnim reported the suspension of nuclear talks with the United States. The reversal reinstates a geopolitical risk premium and complicates the European Central Bank’s policy assessment ahead of its 11 June meeting.

The energy shock unleashed by the war in the Middle East is forcing a strategic rethink in Brussels, blending emergency relief with a longer push for resilience and economic security. The European Commission’s Spring 2026 Forecast cut EU growth to 1.1% and raised inflation to 3.1% for the year, with energy commodity prices expected to…

The European Union is staking its economic future on finally completing its own single market. The presidents of the European Parliament, the Council of the EU and the European Commission have signed a Joint Declaration backing the One Europe, One Market roadmap, agreed on the sidelines of the informal meeting of EU leaders held in…

Crude oil closed May with its steepest monthly fall since the Covid-19 pandemic, as traders weighed the prospect of a durable US-Iran ceasefire against fresh military exchanges. Brent ended the month near USD 92 a barrel, down roughly 19% over May and about 20% from its 2026 peak. A deal almost done, but not signed…

The European Central Bank heads into one of its most consequential meetings in years with a new figure at the top table. Boris VUJCIC, governor of the Croatian National Bank, takes office as ECB Vice-President on 1 June 2026, beginning a non-renewable eight-year term after his appointment by the European Council. He succeeds Luis DE…

With eurozone inflation accelerating to 3.0% in April on surging energy costs from the Middle East war, the European Central Bank approaches its June meeting under pressure to consider its first rate increase in years, after holding the deposit rate at 2% since mid-2025.

The European Union is pressing ahead with an active trade agenda as it seeks to diversify partnerships amid global tensions. On 22 May 2026, the Commission signed trade agreements with Mexico, deepening ties with one of Latin America’s largest economies and reinforcing the bloc’s network of preferential arrangements at a time of transatlantic uncertainty. The…