EMU Archives

Outgoing European Commission president, Jean-Claude Juncker, announced on Tuesday (22 October) that the investment plan launched at the beginning of his mandate helped create 1.1 million jobs in Europe and boosted the European economy by 0.9%.

The European Commission is putting the final touches to a number of letters to various national governments that are at risk of missing their fiscal targets for 2020. Brussels wants more information on how they intend to to balance their public finances.

Finance ministers of the 19-member euro area reached agreement late on Wednesday (9 October) on the details of a "budgetary instrument" for the eurozone, including stronger measures to support countries hit by a sudden economic shock.

Paolo Gentiloni won the European Parliament's approval on Thursday (3 October) to become EU Commissioner for the Economy, with ambitious plans to unblock tax proposals and to design the European unemployment reinsurance  scheme.

ECB President Mario Draghi urged EU co-legislators on Monday (23 September) to set up a fiscal capacity to counter eurozone’s economic shocks, as he warned of the worsening economic outlook in his farewell debate with MEPs.

EU member states remain split over a possible relaxation of the bloc’s fiscal rules meant to facilitate investment in the bloc, despite calls from the European Central Bank and some governments to increase public spending and mitigate the risk of recession.

The European Commission and some member states including France followed the ECB in pressing Germany and other countries with fiscal space to invest more to counter the risk of recession.

The European Central Bank said on Thursday (12 September) it will reactivate its bond-buying programme, stepping up the monetary stimulus to maintain economic growth, but its president Mario Draghi told Germany and the Netherlands the time has come to spend more in order to avoid the risk of a downturn.

Germany and Poland are pressing for EU budget negotiations to be concluded as quickly as possible. For Poland, the primary beneficiary of the EU's cohesion policy, there is a great deal at stake. Germany hopes the negotiations will finish before it takes over the EU presidency next July. EURACTIV Germany reports.

The European Fiscal Board has recommended major reform of the Stability and Growth Pact in order to simplify the EU’s spending rules and favour productive investment in the era of low-interest rates.

Achieving a “more assertive” Europe that can improve its competitiveness and sovereignty in an increasingly hostile world. These are the main guidelines of President-elect Ursula von der Leyen to the new College of Commissioners, unveiled on Tuesday (10 September).

Christine Lagarde promised on Wednesday (4 September) to respond with “agility” to the looming financial and economic turbulences once she becomes the president of the European Central Bank in November, while confirming that the current loose monetary stance will continue for a “long period of time.”

The ECB's key interest rate remains at zero and is expected to be at that rate at least until summer 2020. However, ECB chief Mario Draghi is suggesting that a decisive fiscal policy is far more important for the eurozone, especially for Germany and Italy. EURACTIV Germany reports.

For many, the banking union represents the most ambitious step in EU integration since the creation of the euro. As the chairwoman of the new authority to resolve European systemic banks, Elke König, has been in the driving seat of the process.

Revenue sharing among member states appears as the main outstanding issue to reach an agreement on the financial transaction tax (FTT), as Spain is still opposing the mutualisation of the resources, European officials told EURACTIV.

The European Commission will play a key role in deciding what reforms and investments are supported by a new financial instrument expected to be in place in 2021, whose amount is yet to be decided by the member states as part of the negotiations on the EU's long-term budget (MFF).

British diplomats tried to establish a "very private link" with former French president Jacques Chirac with the "unavowed aim" of exposing him to the risks of a European currency union, declassified documents revealed Thursday (17 July).

The European Commission kept its growth forecast unchanged at 1.2% on Wednesday (10 July) but revised downwards inflation to 1.3% for this year and the next, strengthening the case for further monetary stimulus as global economic risks worsen.

European ministers and institutions told Germany on Monday (8 July) to increase public spending in order to support the ailing growth in the eurozone, as decision-makers and investors see a growing risk of recession looming on the horizon.

The European Commission concluded on Wednesday (3 July) that Italy was no longer breaching the EU’s fiscal rules after the government reduced public spending by €7.6 billion in a last-minute effort to escape a sanction procedure.

A lawyer by training, Christine Lagarde has been nominated to succeed Mario Draghi as president of the European Central Banck (ECB). The IMF director has an atypical profile, due to her lack of banking experience and question marks over her past. EURACTIV France reports.

On the eve of assuming the EU's rotating presidency, the new centre-left Prime Minister of Finland, Antti Rinne, accepted on Wednesday (26 June) the possibility of a “small” eurozone budget to support investments, as long as it remains part of the EU’s long-term spending plans.

EU leaders failed to inject further ambition to a Eurogroup deal on watered-down reforms of the Economic and Monetary Union, including a budgetary instrument for the eurozone, at the Euro summit on Friday (21 June). 

In an exclusive interview with EURACTIV.com after the European Council, Dutch Prime Minister, Mark Rutte, said on Friday (21 June) that he "will never support" new budgetary instruments to stabilise the euro area if an economic shock hits the region.