The German government has revised its 2024 economic forecast downwards, now predicting a 0.2% GDP decline compared to the previous 0.3% growth forecast in April. Germany experienced a 0.3% decrease in GDP in 2023. The Financial Times reports that there will be a decrease for two years in a row for the first time since the early 2000s. German Economy Minister Robert Habeck stated on October 9...

The National Cognac Bureau (BNIC) stated that French cognac producers are now being held captive by the impact of the EU's tariff increase on Chinese electric cars and Beijing's retaliatory actions. "We urge our government to act accordingly to put an end to the escalation that is affecting us," stated BNIC on Tuesday. The organization said that China's response to brandy shipments would have a...

Italgas, an Italian gas company, has revealed the acquisition of 2i Rete Gas, a smaller competitor, for €5.3 billion, which includes debt, from F2i SGR S.p.A. and Finavias. Italgas announced in a press release that the agreement is set to be finalized in the first half of 2025 pending regulatory approval. The consolidation of the firms will lead to the establishment of the biggest operator of a...

Scott Rubner, a technical strategist at Goldman Sachs Group, expects that the S&P 500 American stock index could achieve 6,000 points by the end of this year. MarketWatch reports that the forecast predicts an approximately 5% increase in the indicator from its current levels. Rubner anticipates a late October start for the rally in the U.S. stock market, with three weeks of heightened volatility...

Two additional major Japanese sponsors of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) - Toyota and Bridgestone - have decided not to extend their contracts. During a meeting with US dealers, Akio Toyoda, President of Toyota, said that they chose not to continue sponsoring the IOC after Paris due to doubts about their focus on prioritizing people's interests. At that, Toyoda promised to keep...

The Bank of England announced that the last publication of LIBOR data took place on September 30, marking the end of the rate's existence. This impacted all 35 LIBOR rates across various currencies and maturity periods. The British central bank stated that shifting away from LIBOR, which was previously tied to around $400 trillion worth of financial contracts, has improved the safety,...

Preliminary data from Eurostat shows that annualized consumer prices in the eurozone increased by 1.8% in September 2024. MarketWatch points out that inflation below the European Central Bank's (ECB) 2% target was observed for the first time since June 2021. In August, the inflation rate reached 2.2%. According to analysts' consensus forecast cited by Trading Economics, consumer price growth...

Research by VesselsValue revealed that the top three tanker purchasers collectively spent over $1bn on acquisitions between February and July. A total of ten prominent players in this industry bought 46 tankers for $2.3bn during the specified period, whereas they had spent $3.8bn on 78 vessels in the previous six months. At the top of the ranking for the biggest purchasers during the six-month...

According to the Financial Times’ sources mentioned, Saudi Arabia is prepared to move away from the unofficial $100 per barrel oil price benchmark in order to ramp up production. The sources mentioned that the government is committed to following the plan, whereby OPEC+ will start easing oil production restrictions from December 1, even if it results in an extended period of low oil prices....