Western Europe

BAE Systems, a British company, announced on Tuesday that it would 'cut its stake in Kazakh airline Air Astana almost by half. The aircraft manufacturer, which holds 16.95% of Air Astana's shares, is selling global deposit receipts that represent?about 8 percent of the outstanding common shares. BAE's main business is to manufacture fighter jets and submarines. In?2001, it invested less than 10?million to fund Air Astana at a time that they were bidding to sell radar systems to Kazakhstan. After its dual IPO in London, and Kazakhstan last year, the?company has reduced its stake from?49% to?39%. According to LSEG, following...

The head of Dassault Aviation raised doubts on Tuesday over ?the ?future of a troubled Franco-German-Spanish fighter programme, saying it partly depended on whether Germany was willing to rethink its reliance on U.S. arms imports. "Will it ever happen?" "I don't know," Eric Trappier, CEO of Trappier International, told a corporate security conference. He reiterated calls for a clearer leadership in the core fighter component, which also includes drones, and combat connectivity, of the Future Combat Air System. Trappier said: "Nobody's ever talked to me about two planes." When asked about reports that France, Germany and Airbus could build two...

These are the most popular stories from the Wall Street Journal. These?stories have not been verified and we cannot vouch for their accuracy. Ford Motor announced Monday that it expects to incur charges of about $19.5 billion, mostly related to its electric vehicle business. Donald Trump, the U.S. president, sued 'the BBC for defamation on Monday. His lawsuit claims that the BBC defamed Trump and violated Florida law which prohibits deceptive or unfair trade practices. He wants $5?billion for each count of the lawsuit. PayPal has filed to create a bank that offers business loans and savings account. Frontier Group...

Sources and analysts in the industry said that Airbus has delivered 30 aircraft during the first half December. This is a lower-than-average rate for the month, as some airlines are waiting for information on fixes for a recent fuselage issue. Airbus has delivered 657 jets between January and November. "If they have to deliver another 104 planes to reach the revised?guidance around 790 aircraft, it seems to be a very difficult challenge at this stage in the month," said analyst Rob Morris. He noted that Cirium data indicated 29 deliveries by last Friday. Airbus declined to comment on the mid-month...

Airbus delivered 30 aircraft during the first half of December. This is a lower-than-average rate of delivery for a month, as airlines await details on a fix to a recent problem with fuselages, according to industry sources and analysts. Airbus delivered 657 jets from January to November, so more than 100?jets are still needed to meet the revised?target for 2025 of 790 - a new target. "If they have to deliver another 104 planes to reach the restated guidance around?790 at this point in the month, that seems to be a very steep task," said analyst Rob Morris, noting Cirium...

The Consumer Rights Ministry announced on Monday that Spain fined Airbnb 64 million Euros ($75 million) for advertising unlicensed rental homes. Spain's leftist Government, along with city councils and some regional authorities, have been crackingdown on tourism rentals using sites such as Airbnb.com and Booking.com. Many in?Spain accuse these sites of creating excessive tourism and driving housing costs up by limiting the supply. Airbnb did not respond immediately to a request for comment after it'removed 65,000 listings in July that were deemed by the Ministry as violating its rules. The fine is a judicial penalty that can be appealed. The...

Spanish police announced on Saturday that they had busted a criminal group using helicopters to smuggle Moroccan hashish in "a rare operation" against aerial drug trafficking. The Civil 'Guard spokesperson Gonzalo López said that the 'helicopters could carry up to 900 kg (1,100-2,050 pounds) of hashish, and then transport it by road into other parts of Europe. During raids conducted in the provinces Malaga, Almeria, and Murcia, police seized a helicopter, 657 kg hashish and five firearms. They also seized cash and vehicles. Six people were arrested in the operation that also included Moroccan, Belgian, and Swedish law enforcement agencies....

Nearly a year after President Donald Trump took office, European tourists are flocking to less-heralded and more affordable destinations in the U.S., like Tennessee, Montana, and Idaho. They're skipping popular spots like New York, Washington D.C. While tourism from 'Western Europe' to the United States is down, other destinations are seeing an increase in visitors as they seek out a 'classic Americana experience, and airlines have added flights to smaller cities. As Trump escalated a trade conflict and at times criticized Europe harshly, many travelers cancelled trips to the United States in spring. According to the U.S. National Travel and...

After inconclusive discussions in Berlin, the defence ministers of Germany, France, and Spain pushed discussions about a troubled European Fighter Jets Project to a meeting with government leaders next week. Boris Pistorius, of Germany, Catherine Vautrin of France and Margarita Robles of Spain met on Thursday in Berlin to discuss the fate FCAS Project whose future is in doubt due to industrial disputes. Airbus, a German-and-Spanish-backed company, and Dassault Aviation of France are at odds with each other over issues such as technology and industrial control. These disagreements threaten to sabotage the 100 billion-euro project for renewing air power by...

Google, owned by Alphabet, is likely to face a fine from EU antitrust regulators in the coming year because it has not done enough to adhere to EU rules that prohibit favouring its own products and services when displaying search results. The United States will be furious at a penalty against Google. They have criticized a number of landmark EU laws for being aimed at U.S. technology companies, despite EU denials. In March, the European Commission charged Google with favoring its own products such as "Google Shopping", "Google Hotels" and "Google Flights" over those of competitors. Google is pitted against...

Olympic ski champion Michelle Gisin is to undergo neck surgery following a 'heavy fall in downhill training at St Moritz, Switzerland on Thursday. This will be another major setback ahead of the Milano Cortina Games for the Swiss Alpine team. After immediate medical treatment on the slope, the 32-year old, who won both the combined event at the Winter Olympics in 2018 and 2022, was flown from Zurich to Zurich. Swiss Ski said Gisin had injuries to her cervical spine, left knee, and right wrist after she crashed into a safety net. She was able to move her arms and...

The blue-chip FTSE 100 index in Britain edged higher on Wednesday as a result of gains made by?banking? stocks, while investors waited for the U.S. Federal Reserve to announce its interest rate decision. The FTSE 100 index closed at 0.1% while the domestically focused FTSE 250 index fell 0.4%, to a new two-week low. Lenders HSBC & Standard Chartered rose by 3.2% & 2.2% respectively following the bullish'recommendations' of BofA Global Research. The FTSE 350 Banks index rose by 1.8%, leading all sectors. There is a general consensus that the Fed will cut interest rates next year by 25 basis...

The government relaxed rules for mixing biofuels with petrol and diesel in Sweden, according to data released on Tuesday. This reversed a downward trend in recent years. Swedish Environmental Protection Agency stated that the increase in emissions would make it more difficult for Sweden to meet its EU-mandated goals on climate change. Since 1990, Sweden's CO2 emissions and other greenhouse gas emissions have declined. However, the right-of-centre government reversed many of the measures taken in the fight against climate change. The Swedish Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA) reported that emissions from domestic transport rose by 24% between 2024 and 2030, while...

Yerlan Akenzhenov, Kazakhstan's Minister of Energy, announced on Monday that the?delivery of two new moorings points to Caspian Pipeline Consortium’s Black Sea Terminal has been pushed back to January. CPC exports were curtailed following a drone strike by Ukraine that?damaged a part of their loading infrastructure, one of three single-point-moorings on November 29. CPC had long planned to replace the equipment. The strike forced Kazakhstan to divert oil to other routes including China. CPC exports account for 1% of the global crude oil supply. The pipeline's shareholders are Russian, Kazakh, and U.S. entities. WIND COMPLICATES MAINTENANCE CPC's 1,500 km pipeline...

A senior EU legislator?said? on Friday that the European Commission would move to scrap plans for an effective prohibition on new combustion engine vehicles from 2035. This would be a significant victory for Germany, which has been pushing to protect its automakers. In an earlier statement, Manfred Weber suggested that there would be a different proposal to reduce CO2 emissions by 90% for the fleet targets of automakers starting in 2035. The EU had planned to ban the sale of all electric cars in Europe as part of its strategy for decarbonisation. But Brussels has been subjected to intense lobbying...

A Volvo executive told reporters on Friday that he hopes the European Commission will resist pressures to lift the effective ban on the sale of combustion engine cars, and said the Swedish automaker is "ready to go" when it comes to electric alternatives. Germany, Italy, and their manufacturers are lobbying Brussels for at least a watering down of plans for a ban by 2035. They argue that they need help in order to compete with China. The European Commission is expected to remove the ban on automakers fleets next week, according to a?leading German EU legislator. He also suggested that...

Boersen-Zeitung, a German newspaper, reported that the German government was in early discussions to 'acquire' a majority stake of?TenneT Germany power grid operations after agreeing in principle to take 25.1%. The financial paper cited sources that said 'Berlin was considering building a consortium with financial investors like Apollo, Blackstone, or Brookfield. Companies and the German Economy Ministry did not respond immediately to a request for comment. Boersen-Zeitung cited sources who said that the German government has also agreed to buy in principle a 25,1% stake in grid company's Dutch parent. Last month, a document from the Ministry of Economy stated...

Industry sources reported on Thursday that premiums for Azeri BTC crude oil compared to Brent dated fell by 12% between November and October. According to the schedule, Azeri BTC crude exports to Turkey from Ceyhan have been set to 16.2 million barrels, down from 17.0 in December. The traders stated that the lower supply of grade "supported" the differentials. CPC, which is responsible for around 80% of Kazakhstan’s oil exports, suffered a drone attack on November 29th, causing severe damage to one of its three main exporting units. Sources said that exports fell last month from 1.52 million barrels a...

A cyclone extratropical that swept across Sao Paulo on Thursday knocked out electricity to 1.5 million homes and business. The storm also damaged power lines, disrupted flights and water supply and destroyed trees. In 2023 and 2024 there were also massive power outages caused by wind storms, which brought Enel to public attention. Enel reported gusts up to 98km/h (61mph) battered a region of 11 million people during a 12-hour gale Wednesday. The impacts of the storm continued into Thursday. Enel announced in an early Thursday morning statement that about 2 million customers in the region lost power during the...

Gascade, a German gas grid operator, announced on Thursday that it had converted a 400-km (249-mile) high-pressure pipe to transport low carbon hydrogen southwards as part of an 'European core network' to ship alternative fuels. The Ukraine conflict has also heightened the importance of energy security and the replacement of Russian gas in the EU. The pipeline can transport locally produced hydrogen from Mecklenburg-Vorpommern state ?via Brandenburg to Saxony-Anhalt initially, with a view to reaching the industry in southern Germany by ?2029, and branching out to Poland, the Czech ?Republic and Austria later. Gascade's managing director Ulrich Benterbusch said: "Converting...

Two industry sources reported on Thursday that oil exports by the Caspian Pipeline Consortium, which ships 'oil from Kazakhstan through a pipeline and then to a Russian Black Sea terminal, had declined 12% from October. CPC, the company that handles around 80% Kazakhstan's oil exports, was severely damaged by a Ukrainian drone in November. Since then, SPM-2 has been?damaged, and SPM-3 is under maintenance. Sources said that exports fell last month from 1.52 millions barrels per day to 5.088 metric tons or 1.34million barrels per day. CPC exports increased by 15% between January and November to 66.541 millions tons. CPC...

PCK, Germany's PCK, said Thursday that it was operating normally. It also stated that they were drawing from "internal stock" a day following a crude spillage in a pipeline feeding the re-finery via the port of Rostock. PCK reported that the incident occurred at a valve-station near Gramzow. There were no injuries or dangers for residents in the area. There are no immediate effects on the refinery's operations. PCK has enough stocks to cover short-term interruptions in supply," said a PCK spokesperson. According to the current information, "there is no damage in the pipeline." A restart can therefore be planned...

Shell is looking to dissolve its joint venture with Rosneft in Russia, which allows the London-listed company to hold a part of its stake in Caspian Pipeline Consortium. A source who has direct knowledge about the matter confirmed this on Wednesday. In October, the United States imposed sanctions against?Rosneft over Russia's involvement in the?Ukraine war. On 'Monday, Russian President Vladimir Putin released a decree clearing potential deals with Rosneft's and Shell’s joint-venture stakes in CPC which exports oil mostly from Kazakhstan. Shell owns a total of 7.4% of the?CPC through three entities. One of these is the Rosneft/Shell Caspian Ventures...

The German energy regulator has proposed new regulations that would allow power grid operators to earn at least 1.4% extra from 2029 when the next five-year regulation period begins. Bundesnetzagentur announced ahead of a press conference that in exchange for the stronger incentives, around 900 companies qualifying will be subject to tougher efficiency goals. "Investments in?German electric grids are becoming increasingly attractive." "We are also ensuring grid operators run their operations more efficiently," said Bundesnetzagentur President Klaus Mueller. He was referring to an upcoming draft which includes provisions for gas grid companies from 2028. The regulator is responsible for the...