Business advice

What about summer break? Brussels looks for ways of saving Europe’s sacred summer break. Commission under pressure to come up with a common system of rules to allow limited travel and prevent countries going it alone. Gradual moves towards easing Europe’s lockdown measures have turned political attention on an industry that is the lifeblood of countless regions across the continent: tourism. Discussing holiday plans for Europe’s quarantined populations is not without its pitfalls. Ursula von der Leyen, European Commission president, learnt the hard way when she announced earlier this month that no one should be planning a summer break. The commission chief was later forced to recant and insisted that holidaymakers could make the most of “smart solutions to have a summer vacation” as restrictions ease. The potential scale of the devastation is eye-watering. Mr Breton told MEPs last week that at worst, the sector is facing a €400bn wipeout from lost visitors this year. The...

Who expands commercial vehicle battery business in Europe? The Chinese battery giant CATL has just signed a deal to provide VDL Bus & Coach with its high energy density battery system based on its standardized LFP-CTP (Cell to Pack) product platform. Furthermore, CATL appointed Quantron as its authorized sales and service partner for commercial vehicles and industrial applications in Europe. Firstly to CATL SME business in Europe: As an importer, Quantron is now authorised to supply batteries in Europe as a dealer for CATL. The German company specialises in the electrification of commercial vehicles and is now responsible for CATL battery sales and after-sales partner for commercial vehicles and industrial applications. Quantron will also rely on CATL batteries for its own retrofits in the future. According to CATL, its cooperation with Quantron is not intended to reach large OEMs – the Chinese company will continue to do this business directly. Such a deal has just bee...

New norms in Europe In Paris, Prime Minister Edouard Philippe announced plans to reopen stores starting on May 11. Spanish counterpart Pedro Sanchez said he aims to remove most restrictions on daily life and return to a “new normality” over the next eight weeks. Schools in Spain, though, will remain closed until September. Europe took another step toward life after lockdown as France, Spain and Greece unveiled details of how they plan to emerge from the coronavirus and cautiously restart economies crippled by the pandemic. A clearer picture is now emerging of how Europe aims to ease its way back toward some semblance of normality, though governments have stressed that there’s still a long way to go before coronavirus is beaten. With the absence of a vaccine, all countries are trying to strike a delicate balance between reviving businesses and household finances while averting a potentially devastating second wave of infections. Philippe said French restaurants and cafes m...

Ford comes back in Europe FORD TO RESTART EUROPEAN MANUFACTURING PRODUCTION WITH ENHANCED EMPLOYEE PROTECTION PROTOCOLS IN PLACE Manufacturing will resume on May 4 in a phased approach at Saarlouis Vehicle Assembly Operations and Cologne Assembly Operations and Engine Plant in Germany; Valencia Vehicle Assembly Operations in Spain; and Craiova Vehicle Assembly Operations and Engine Plant in Romania. Production will restart at Valencia Engine Plant in Spain on May 18, while the resumption date for Ford’s Dagenham and Bridgend Engine Plants in the United Kingdom will be confirmed at a later date.   Vehicle and engine production planned to restart at most of Ford’s main manufacturing sites in continental Europe, in a phased approach, from May 4 Gradual ramp-up over the next few months before full production is resumed Ford global standards on social distancing and health and safety protocols in place to protect returning workforce Ford making its own face...

ec.europa.eu: What is in today's banking package? Today we are clarifying how the current rules can be applied more flexibly and in a coherent manner across the EU, while maintaining a prudent approach so as to preserve financial stability. It provides a consistent and uniform interpretation of the flexibility in these rules, so that banks and supervisors are on the same footing across the EU. Today's package includes an Interpretative Communication on the EU's accounting and prudential frameworks (“Supporting businesses and households amid COVID-19”), as well as targeted “quick fix” amendments to EU banking rules (the Capital Requirements Regulation (CRR)). What does the Interpretative Communication aim to do? In its Communication of 13 March 2020 on a coordinated economic response to the Coronavirus pandemic, the Commission invited prudential and accounting authorities to further specify how to make best use of the flexibility provided for in the existing reg...

Business life in Europe wakes up The organisers of Sleep & Eat have announced the first details of this November’s show in Olympia London, designed to support hospitality businesses across the spectrum and lift the trammelled spirits of the hospitality community.  New for this year, there will be an array of meeting and networking platforms designed to generate conversations and connections between all members of the hospitality community, which will include series of one-to-one meetings organised in advance through the show’s new portal. Initiatives such as these will be combined with a unique collection of experiential Sets, a Conference bringing industry leaders together, this year to debate the shape of hospitality after COVID-19, and an international Exhibition.  The organisers have also revealed that, for the first time, the event will be delivered in collaboration with major international Hotel Brand Partners, Accor, IHG and Wyndham Hotels & Resorts. ...

The future by European carbon market ? The oil market collapse is opening a new debate in Europe about strengthening the carbon market, a key tool in the region’s bid for climate neutrality. European Union energy ministers are set to discuss on Tuesday the security of supplies and the role of the industry in a plan for an economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic. The joint shocks of the viral outbreak and record low oil prices hit the energy markets shortly after the EU announced its Green Deal. That has prompted France to urge bolstering the bloc’s carbon market through measures including a floor price.

One of the fastest business growing in Europe The company is a sustainability consultancy, and is headquartered at Magdalen Road, Oxford. A COMPANY founded by Oxford’s Lord Mayor has made it onto a list of Europe’s fastest growing businesses. Away from the council chamber, Oxford Lord Mayor and city councillor for St Mary's ward Craig Simmons works at Anthesis. The Green group leader said he thought Anthesis' services would be important in coming decades. Mr Simmons said: “I am delighted to have played my part in growing Anthesis – a company that is making the world more sustainable. As we enter the decisive decade, the need for action has never been more important.” Anthesis works with other businesses to help them become more environmentally friendly. Mr Simmons has worked with Tesco to make their agricultural processes and food production better for the environment. Full article available here: https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/18408582.lord-mayors-bu...

Which companies can’t get support from EU? Tax-dodging corporations with outposts in offshore havens risk being left high and dry when European nations hand out vast bailouts to companies devastated by the Covid-19 pandemic. A growing number of countries said they may exclude companies based in the Cayman Islands, Panama, the U.S. Virgin Islands and other states on a European Union blacklist of “non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax.” Upholding its Nordic reputation for fair play, Denmark has taken the lead, prompting politicians across the 27-nation EU to call for similar action as public impatience grows over rescues going to tax-dodging companies. “You cannot ask the Danish society for help one day only to turn your back on the community the next and send your money to a country on the EU’s list of tax havens,” the Nordic nation’s Business Minister Simon Kollerup said in an email. “It is simply not fair.” From manufacturing to banking, the use of havens has become a...

European business leaders expect revenue hit Across the full dataset, 76% of business leaders said that the Covid-19 crisis is having a negative impact on their company to date, of which 33% forecast a ‘very negative’ impact. 85% expect the impact to be negative over the next 6 months, with 29% preparing for a ‘very negative’ downturn.  The Covid-19 crisis is bringing about unprecedented disruption to the financial coffers of European businesses, according to a new Eden McCallum survey held among over 300 business leaders based in Europe.  As part of mitigation and response planning, companies are taking a range of measures to curb costs and maintain operations as well as services to clients. Reducing non-people costs is the top action taken, followed by deferring or reducing capital expenditures, in the most cases related to non-strategic spending. Over half of the respondents have indicated that they are making use of government employment support. Other measu...

Italy plans to reopen Italy, the first Western nation to shut down, is now in the vanguard of moves to cautiously reopen its economy. From May 4, shops like Ferraro’s can provide takeaways, and they will fully restart from June 1. But the aid deployment figures so far are worrying for business leaders and politicians alike. The government says debt guarantees made available by the state can unlock up to €740 billion ($803 billion) in funding for businesses which have been crippled by a seven-week lockdown. So far just €3.1 billion in funds have been released, the Treasury said at the weekend. Of that, only €115 million are in the form of loans worth up to €25,000 fully secured by the state, which do not require banks to perform credit analyses on borrowers. The financial stakes are higher for Italy than many others in Europe because its economy was faltering even before COVID-19, and the pandemic hit hardest in the northern industrial heartlands that generate a third of i...

FIRST-QUARTER for business in 2020  About revenues Klépierre’s total revenues for the three-month period ended March 31, 2020 amounted to €316.8 million, a 4.2% decrease compared to the same period last year, mainly attributable to the impact of disposals carried out in 2019. Gross rental income generated by shopping centers amounted to €291.9 million over the first quarter of 2020 on a total share basis, compared to €304.9 million for the same period last year. The €13.0-million (4.3%) decrease mainly reflects the disposal of assets in Hungary, Portugal and the Netherlands in 2019 as well as a negative foreign exchange effect from Scandinavian currencies. As of March 31, 2020, like-for-like basis(2) shopping centers net rental income was broadly stable compared to the same period last year (up 0.1%). This was due to lower variable income (sales-based rents, specialty leasing and parking revenues) as a direct consequence of the lockdowns. Restated for this effect, lik...

Europe can fight with China Over 20 years later, after dismissing calls to democratize and advancing its state-led economy to become the world’s second largest, China has become well practiced at saying no. In its present-day “Wolf Warrior” diplomacy, China is now even learning to pressure the West to say yes to its own demands. Restricting access to the Chinese marketplace is often brandished to break the political will of offending parties. The book China Can Say No was a 1996 Chinese bestseller and a blunt expression of nationalism. Written by a group of right-wing intellectuals, the book called on China to reject liberal values and push back against Western interests conspiring to halt its rise. Europe is a prime venue for China’s top diplomats to show this new assertiveness. Just last week, fearful of repercussions to its trade relationship with China, the European Union softened critical language in an upcoming report on China’s disinformation campaign about the corona...

Theguardian: The US can teach Europe a thing or two about financial crises The US model of capitalism is deeply flawed. It is highly unequal, and an inadequate welfare system means that millions of people are either living in poverty or constantly teetering on the edge. Citizens of the EU have it cushier, with more generous pensions, unemployment pay and in-work benefits. Last week saw yet another can-kicking exercise by EU leaders, who have been at odds for weeks over whether to issue common bonds in response to the economic devastation caused by Covid-19. The matter now looks as if, with luck, it might be finally resolved in early June, but that’s a long time in the current circumstances. Delay is potentially disastrous, for two obvious reasons: the parlous state of the EU economy requires an immediate coordinated response; and the lack of unity puts at risk the goal of ever-closer union. It is not as if the countries that are blocking the mutualisation of debt through ...

Worst recession in decades piles pressure on EU Germany's top economic research institutes said Wednesday that Europe's biggest economy is likely to shrink by 4.2% this year. It expects a contraction of 1.9% in the first three months of this year, and 9.8% in the current quarter. That would be the sharpest decline since record keeping began in 1970 and more than twice as steep as the most damaging quarter during the global financial crisis. London (CNN Business)Europe's top two economies are contracting at their fastest pace in decades, according to forecasts published Wednesday, underscoring the urgent need for EU officials to agree new measures to support workers and businesses affected by the coronavirus pandemic. Evidence of a severe recession in Germany and France is more bad news for other European countries such as Italy and Spain that have been hardest hit by the pandemic and are suffering even greater economic fallout. The dire prediction came as Franc...

Breaking point in Europe’s small-business The economic damage wrought by the coronavirus is clear in countless stories across Europe, from business owners furiously fighting to keep their firms afloat to those who see no hope. In France, where more than half of small firms fear bankruptcy, the crisis led to a public showdown on live television between entrepreneurs and the country’s finance minister. Even with massive government financial support, countries face the prospect of countless businesses going under, destroying livelihoods and jobs, as well as weakening a key part of the economy. Europe’s 25-million small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) — officially defined as having fewer than 250 staff — employ more than 90-million people. Often with low margins and few reserves, small businesses are more vulnerable than bigger groups. SMEunited, an employers’ association representing SMEs at a European level, showed in a recent survey that about 90% report being hit by the ...

Reuters.com: “European shares gain ahead of business activity data” April 23 (Reuters) - European stock markets inched higher on Thursday following a bunch of better-than-expected quarterly earnings reports, even as investors braced for worsening business activity data with the coronavirus outbreak battering the global economy. The pan-European STOXX 600 index was up 0.3% at 0705 GMT, recovering for a second straight day after a historic collapse in oil prices sparked a selloff at the start of the week. Kicking off the first-quarter earnings season for the big European lenders, Credit Suisse Group AG posted a 75% jump in profit, but cautioned the pandemic could impact performance in coming quarters. Its shares rose 2.5%. The STOXX 600 has bounced this month after hitting eight-year lows in March as unprecedented global stimulus and signs of easing in the coronavirus outbreak brought back bargain hunters. Kicking off the first-quarter earnings season for the big European...

The Guardian: “Amazon given €294m in tax credits as European revenues jump to €32bn” Company says it made a loss last year due to investment and the competitive marke Amazon received €294m (£258m) in tax credits last year that it can deduct from future bills for its European business, as revenues at the online retailer rose significantly to €32bn. The company said it received the tax credits because it made a loss last year due to its investment programme and the highly competitive retail environment across Europe and the UK. Amazon Europe made a pre-tax loss of €983m, before taking into account the tax credit, while revenues rose 15% year on year to €32bn. The company paid out €166.6m in licence and royalty payments, partly to affiliated businesses. Tax campaigners suggest such payments help reduce profits and tax payments in particular territories. “Amazon pays all the taxes required in every country where we operate,” said a spokesman for the company. “Corporate tax i...

Chinese takeovers in Europe Chinese companies have made notable acquisitions and investments in European technology firms. In 2016, Chinese tech giant Tencent bought a majority stake in Finnish mobile games maker Supercell and Midea, a Chinese electrical appliance manufacturer, bought German robotics firm Kuka. And last year, Ant Financial, the financial technology affiliate of Alibaba, bought U.K.-based currency exchange WorldFirst.  But scrutiny of Chinese takeover attempts have increased recently, particularly in the U.S. through the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, or CFIUS. It has blocked Chinese companies that attempt to acquire American firms, especially those seen in key technology areas.  One example was in 2018, when CFIUS blocked American semiconductor testing company Xcerra’s takeover by China’s Hubei Xinyan.  And in January, CFIUS gained increased powers to scrutinize deals for national security threats.  That heig...

Casper lays off 78 corporate employees, winds down Europe business The embattled mattress startup is the latest brand to announce layoffs during the COVID-19 crisis, releasing a third of its HQ staff and closing its Europe business. Casper is the latest direct-to-consumer startup to announce significant layoffs in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis. Today, the six-year-old brand laid off 78 employees from the corporate team, which makes up 21% of its total corporate workforce. The company is also winding down its European operations and its 31-person headquarters in Germany, according to a person familiar with the matter. The other employees who were laid off came from various departments, including marketing and product development. According to a statement from the company, this will result in “more than $10 million in annualized savings, and are part of the company’s overall focus on achieving profitability.” Greg Macfarlane, Casper’s CFO and COO, will depart the company in Ma...

simpleflying: Western Europe Has Seen The Biggest Global Capacity Drop According to the latest OAG update dated 13th of April, around five million scheduled seats for the coming week have been removed by airlines globally. This is the lowest weekly capacity-cut since the 16th of March. One of the prime reasons behind this trend might be related to the current capacity reaching a minimum operational threshold. In total, around 58 million scheduled seats have been removed by airlines in the last four weeks. Western Europe has shown the largest capacity drop, while China shows signs of improvement. Changes in numbers Comparing current airline capacity to the scheduled capacity in the week starting 20th January gives us a representation of the effects of coronavirus. Region-wise, Europe, Southwest-Pacific, and Lower South America have shown the most considerable decline. An area-wise reduction in scheduled capacity is as follows: Western Europe: –90.7% Southwest-Pacifi...