Author: staff
Germany’s economic confidence has surged to its strongest level since mid-2021, shrugging off renewed tariff threats from the US and signalling growing optimism that 2026 could mark a turning point for Europe’s largest economy. The ZEW Economic Sentiment Index jumped to 59.6 points in January, up from 45.8 in December and well above market expectations of 50. This marks its highest reading since July 2021. The gauge of current conditions, while still deeply negative, also improved to -72.7 points, from -81 the previous month. “The ZEW Index is rising strongly. 2026 could mark a turning point,” ZEW President Achim Wambach…
Beijing purchased the site, which will accommodate what is expected to be the biggest embassy in Europe, in 2018. A raft of security concerns have been raised in the planning process, including over the proposed embassy’s proximity to cables carrying communications to the vital City of London financial district. There has also been disquiet over Beijing’s refusal to present full internal layout plans to the British authorities. The original Sept. 9, 2025 deadline for a decision to be made was missed after ministers took control of the application from Tower Hamlets Council. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian warned last October…
People in northern Germany flocked to the Elbe river Monday to marvel at giant Arctic-style ice floes that have clogged up a stretch of the waterway, creating a headache for shipping but delighting visitors. The ice formed upstream in recent weeks during a cold snap that saw temperatures plummet to minus 15 degrees Celsius. Icebreakers have since smashed through the ice, sending the floes downstream where they accumulated at a barrage at Geesthacht, near the river-port of Hamburg, said Tilman Treber from the federal navigation authority.
Published on 20/01/2026 – 11:01 GMT+1 Calls for a meat tax continue to intensify, as evidence mounts on how our carbon-intensive diets are baking the planet. Food and agriculture contribute one-third of global greenhouse gas emissions, second only to burning fossil fuels. A 2023 study published in the journal Nature found that greenhouse gas emissions from the way humans produce and consume food could add nearly 1℃ of warming to the Earth’s atmosphere by 2100. Meat, particularly beef and lamb, is often identified by scientists as one of the biggest culprits of environmental damage. According to CO2 Everything, one 100g…
France’s political extremes do not have enough lawmakers to bring down the government without the assistance of more centrist members of the opposition. Lecornu announced Monday he would expose his government to the possible no-confidence votes by invoking a constitutional backdoor to finalize France’s fiscal plans after months of deadlock. France entered the new year without a proper budget after lawmakers failed to adopt one in December but avoided a U.S.-style shutdown by rolling over last year’s budget into 2026. The maneuver Lecornu is using to enact a proper budget — Article 49.3 of the French constitution — allows the…
11:30 GMT+1 EU response to Trump’s tariffs will be ‘unflinching’, says von der Leyen If Donald Trump goes ahead with the 10% tariffs against eight European countries to force the sale of Greenland, the European Union’s response will be “unflinching”, von der Leyen just said in Davos. “We consider the people of the United States not just our allies, but our friends,” she said. “And plunging us into a dangerous downward spiral would only aid the very adversaries we are both so committed to keeping out of our strategic landscape. So our response will be unflinching, united and proportional.”The Commission…
Swiss citizen movement Campax projects onto the ski slopes of Davos, Switzerland, a satirical image of US President Donald Trump, who is expected to attend the World Economic Forum on Wednesday. The action coincided with wider protests in Zurich, where more than 1,000 people gathered on Monday evening to oppose the annual meeting of global political and business leaders. Police officers and vans were seen around Bürkliplatz as the crowd assembled at 6.30 p.m. The demonstration, called by a coalition of left-wing groups, voiced criticism of corporate influence and the WEF’s elite character. Campax said its projection symbolised the gap…
“Shockingly, our “brilliant” NATO Ally, the United Kingdom, is currently planning to give away the Island of Diego Garcia, the site of a vital U.S. Military Base, to Mauritius, and to do so for no reason whatsoever,” the U.S. president posted on Truth Social. “There is no doubt that China and Russia have noticed this act of total weakness. These are international powers who only recognize strength,” Trump claimed, adding Britain “giving away extremely important land is an act of great stupidity.” The president said the U.K.’s Chagos decision justified his desire to acquire Greenland — a move NATO allies, including…
Good morning from Brussels. A common strategy is emerging among EU governments as the reality of the economic and geopolitical risks of US President Donald Trump’s tariff threats sink in: prioritise dialogue and diplomacy, while preparing for the worst. EU leaders are now geared up for intense shuttle diplomacy between Brussels and the Swiss village of Davos. Trump confirmed earlier that he had spoken to NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte on the phone and agreed to a “meeting of the various parties” in Davos, repeating his claim that Greenland, a Danish autonomous territory, is “imperative” for US national security. Trump also…
By Euronews Published on 20/01/2026 – 10:19 GMT+1 US President Donald Trump on Tuesday criticised the UK’s deal to hand sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius, calling it an “act of great stupidity” and “total weakness.” Trump said that relinquishing the remote Indian Ocean archipelago — home to a key joint US-UK military base on Diego Garcia, the largest island — was “another in a very long line of national security reasons why Greenland has to be acquired.” “Shockingly, our ‘brilliant’ NATO ally, the United Kingdom, is currently planning to give away the island of Diego Garcia, the site of…