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☆ Case of mad cow disease in Netherlands is old age variant
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

AMSTERDAM, Feb 1 (Reuters) - A case of mad cow disease discovered on a farm in the Netherlands is the old age variant that is not dangerous to public health, the agriculture ministry said on Wednesday. "Atypical cases of (mad cow disease) occur sporadically in older cows," the ministry said in a statement, adding that the last found case in the Netherlands dated back to 2011. The other variant of mad cow disease, the classic type of infection, is usually caused by contaminated animal feed. Widespread cases of mad cow disease hit cattle herds in Britain and other European countries in the 1990s. Atypical cases have occasionally been detected and can lead to temporary trade restrictions.

☆ Philips to cut 13% of jobs in safety and profitability drive
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( Bart H. Meijer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The new reorganisation brings the total amount of job cuts announced by new Chief Executive Roy Jakobs in recent months to 10,000, or around 13% of Philips' current workforce. Philips shares traded up 5.5% at 0855 GMT, helped by fourth-quarter earnings which were much better than expected. "What we present today I think is a very strong plan to secure the future of Philips. Jakobs said patient safety would be put "squarely at the center" of the new organization. To improve profitability while investing in safety, innovations will be targeted at "fewer, better resourced, and more impactful projects", Jakobs said.

REUTERS/Lisi Niesner/File PhotoWASHINGTON/BRUSSELS, Jan 23 (Reuters) - The West on Monday stepped up pressure on Iran over its crackdown on protests as the United States, European Union and United Kingdom imposed fresh sanctions on Tehran. 'BRUTAL REPRESSION'The European Union imposed sanctions on more than 30 Iranian officials and organizations, including units of the Revolutionary Guards, blaming them for a "brutal" crackdown on protesters and other human rights abuses. Those sanctions targeted units and senior officials of the IRGC across Iran, including in Sunni-populated areas where the state crackdown has been intense, a list published in the EU's Official Journal showed. Britain also imposed sanctions on more Iranian individuals and entities on Monday over the country's "brutal repression" of its people. Britain has now imposed 50 new sanctions against Iran since Amini's death, the foreign office said.

☆ EU foreign policy chief hopes bloc agrees next tranche of military aid to Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BRUSSELS, Jan 23 (Reuters) - The European Union's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said he hopes member states will approve another 500 million euro ($545.00 million) tranche in military aid for Ukraine during a foreign ministers' meeting on Monday. The ministers will also discuss using Russian assets frozen in Europe under sanctions - including 300 billion euros ($327 bln) worth of the Russian central bank reserves - and using the money to help rebuild Ukraine from the war. The foreign ministers are due to add more individuals to its Iran sanctions list over human rights abuses. Borrell said, however, that the bloc could not list Iran's Revolutionary Guards as a terrorist entity until an EU court has determined that they are. ($1 = 0.9174 euros)Writting by Tassilo Hummel, Gbariela Baczynska, Ingrid Melander, Bart Meijer, Philip BlenkinsopOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ EU says it cannot brand Iran's Guards as terror group before court ruling
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BRUSSELS, Jan 23 (Reuters) - The European Union cannot list Iran's Revolutionary Guards as a terrorist entity until an EU court has determined that they are, the European Union's foreign policy chief said on Monday. The European Parliament has called on the EU to list the Revolutionary Guards as a terrorist entity, blaming it for the repression of domestic protests and the supply of drones to Russia. "It is something that cannot be decided without a court, a court decision first. He said the court of an EU member had to issue a concrete legal condemnation before the EU itself could act. The Iranian regime, the Revolutionary Guards terrorise their own population day after day," Baerbock said.

☆ EU ministers agree on new package of sanctions against Iran
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

BRUSSELS, Jan 23 (Reuters) - EU ministers on Monday agreed on a new package of sanctions against Iran, the Swedish EU presidency said. "Ministers adopted a new package of sanctions against Iran, targeting those driving the repression. The EU strongly condemns the brutal and disproportionate use of force by the Iranian authorities against peaceful protesters," the presidency said in a tweet, without giving further detail. Sources told Reuters last week that EU foreign ministers would add 37 individual entries to the EU's sanctions against Iran at their meeting on Monday. Reporting by Bart Meijer; editing by Jason NeelyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ ECB set to raise rates by 50 basis points in February and March, Knot says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

AMSTERDAM, Jan 22 (Reuters) - The European Central Bank (ECB) is set to raise interest rates by 50 basis points in both February and March and will continue to raise rates in the months after, ECB governing council member Klaas Knot said in an interview with Dutch broadcaster WNL on Sunday. "Expect us to raise rates by 0.5% in February and March and expect us to not be done by then and that more steps will follow in May and June," Knot said. "At some point, of course, the risks surrounding the inflation outlook will become more balanced," he said. "That would also be a time in which we could make a further step down from 50 to 25 basis points, for instance. Reporting by Bart Meijer and Federico Maccioni Editing by Tomasz JanowskiOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Netherlands sticks to plan to close Groningen gas field by October - FT
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Jan 22 (Reuters) - The Netherlands remains convinced of the need to close production at Groningen, once one of Europe's largest gas fields, by October following earthquake risks which made it dangerous to keep operating, the Financial Times (FT) reported on Sunday citing a government official. Mining Deputy Minister Hans Vijlbrief said he would stick to the previously announced timetable and aimed to shut the earthquake-prone gas field by Oct. 1, with the option of keeping it operational one more year if there was a shortage of gas in Europe after the winter. I’m quite convinced it’s wise to close it down," Vijlbrief said to the FT.Netherlands on Friday said that it will stop the search for new onshore oil and gas fields in a drive to reach its climate goals and limit seismic risks. The Netherlands for decades was one of Europe's main gas suppliers through the Groningen field in the north of the country, until production there was cut to a minimum to limit the seismic risks. Reporting by Mrinmay Dey in Bengaluru and Bart Meijer in Amsterdam; Editing by William Mallard and Raju GopalakrishnanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ ECB set to raise rates by 0.5% in Feb and March, Knot says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

☆ Can the Power Grid Handle a Wave of New Electric Vehicles?
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-21 | by ( Bart Ziegler | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

As sales of EVs keep rising, they will test the power grid. A wave of electric cars, SUVs and pickups is headed toward America’s highways, driven by the auto industry’s aggressive rollout, the vehicles’ growing driving range, environmental regulations and government incentives. Experts believe EVs will make up a third or even half of all light vehicles sold annually in the U.S. by 2030, up from about 7% in 2022.

☆ Bank of Japan keeps yield control policy unchanged
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

MARKET REACTION:The Japanese stock market cheered the BOJ's decision with the Nikkei share average (.N225) jumping more than 2% after the midday break. Therefore, among equities, we think Japanese financials sector will have a rerating of valuations over the next 3-6 months." That could escalate when the new governor of the bank will be announced and towards the policy meeting in March." MOH SIONG SIM, CURRENCY STRATEGIST, BANK OF SINGAPORE, SINGAPORE"The can has been kicked down the road and the attention will shift to the next meeting. CHARU CHANANA, MARKET STRATEGIST, SAXO MARKETS, SINGAPORE:"I think the speculations will still continue.

☆ Dutch PM Rutte sees progress in talks on U.S. chip export restrictions
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

AMSTERDAM, Jan 17 (Reuters) - Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte on Tuesday said he saw gradual progress in talks over new restrictions the United States wants it to implement on exporting chip-making technology to China. "I think that step by step we will be able to reach a good outcome in cooperation," Rutte said in an interview with Dutch TV programme Nieuwsuur following his visit to the White House. The Netherlands is home to ASML Holding NV (ASML.AS), a key maker of semiconductor manufacturing equipment. But he also warned that global supply chains for simpler technologies should not be disrupted by export restrictions. Reporting by Bart Meijer and Toby Sterling, editing by Deepa BabingtonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Jan 16 (Reuters) - Oil prices slipped on Monday but were holding near their highest levels this month as easing COVID restrictions in China raised hopes of a demand recovery in the world's top crude importer. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was down $1.01, or 1.3%, at $78.85 in thin trade on a U.S. public holiday. "The narrative that Chinese growth is going to add to demand is playing a very large part here. Traffic levels in China are rebounding from record lows after the easing of COVID-19 restrictions, resulting in stronger demand for crude and oil products, ANZ analysts said in a note. The United Arab Emirates' energy minister, Suhail al-Mazrouei, said on Monday that oil markets were balanced.

☆ EU Commission wants first joint purchases of gas by summer
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BRUSSELS, Jan 16 (Reuters) - The European Commission aims for EU countries to start jointly buying gas "well before summer", European Commission Vice-President Maros Sefcovic said on Monday, an attempt to help countries refill storage and avoid a supply crunch next winter. Sefcovic asked industry to confirm if they are interested in joining the EU scheme to jointly buy gas, which the Commission hopes will help Europe refill depleted storage caverns and negotiate lower prices by using countries' collective buying power. Some EU officials said certain large energy firms have expressed reluctance to join, since they can already negotiate their own gas deals and doubt the EU scheme will yield lower prices. The Commission aims to publish the amount of gas European countries plan to jointly buy in early spring, to attract offers from suppliers. EU countries must ensure their local companies take part in the aggregation of gas demand with volumes equivalent to 15% of the gas needed to fill that country's storage facilities to 90% of capacity.

[1/2] European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Sweden's Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson attend the inauguration of Esrange's new satellite launch ramp, Spaceport Esrange outside Kiruna, Sweden, January 13, 2023. The Commission is planning to loosen state aid rules, but some EU countries can spend more than others. Von der Leyen said the bloc needed "credible and ambitious" financing tools to preserve the single market. She said the Commission was working on an assessment of what the EU clean tech sector needed to compete with U.S. rivals. Yet Scholz's own Social Democrats published a paper on Thursday saying that new EU joint borrowing should be "constructively examined".

Criminal hackers have posted an enormous trove of sensitive files to the internet from a San Francisco Bay Area transit system’s police department, including specific allegations of child abuse. BART’s chief communications officer, Alicia Trost, said in an email officials were investigating the posted files and that the hackers had not impacted BART services. The perpetrators are an established group of ransomware hackers, one of the many who attack specific organizations and either encrypt sensitive files or threaten to post them on the dark web. Ransomware hackers often demand a payment to not share files. More than 100 networks associated with local government agencies were successfully attacked by ransomware hackers last year, according to an Emsisoft survey.

☆ Netherlands summons Iranian ambassador again over executions
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

AMSTERDAM, Jan 7 (Reuters) - The Dutch government will summon the Iranian ambassador to the Netherlands for the second time in a month to voice its deep concerns over the execution of demonstrators, Foreign Minister Wopke Hoekstra said on Saturday. "Appalled by the horrible executions of demonstrators in Iran. I will summon the Iranian ambassador to underline our serious concerns and I call upon EU Member States to do the same," Hoekstra said in a tweet. Hoekstra said these actions underlined the need for the European Union to impose stronger sanctions on Iran than are currently being considered. The Netherlands also summoned the Iranian ambassador in The Hague last month to protest against the execution of demonstrators in the country.

☆ Old Nazi map sparks treasure hunt in the Netherlands
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] A general view of a street in the Dutch village of Ommeren, Netherlands January 6, 2023. REUTERS/Piroschka van de WouwOMMEREN, the Netherlands, Jan 6 (Reuters) - An old map believed to mark the spot where German soldiers hid treasure worth millions of euros during World War Two sparked the imagination of amateur treasure hunters in the Netherlands this week. The map was obtained from a German soldier shortly after the war by the Dutch institute that was tasked with tracing German capital in the Netherlands after the country was freed from Nazi occupation in 1945. "But they never found it and if it existed, the treasure might very well have been dug up already." "A map with a row of three trees and a red cross marking a spot where a treasure should be hidden sparks the imagination," he said.

☆ Netherlands to require negative COVID test from China travellers
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

AMSTERDAM, Jan 6 (Reuters) - The Netherlands will require travellers from China to show proof of a recent negative COVID-19 test before they are allowed into the country, the Dutch government said on Friday. The requirement, which will be active as of Tuesday, follows recommendations made by the European Union earlier this week, which were already adopted by a range of countries including neighbouring Belgium and Germany. Reporting by Bart Meijer Editing by Chris ReeseOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ TikTok CEO to meet EU antitrust chief Vestager on Tuesday
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

BRUSSELS, Jan 6 (Reuters) - TikTok Chief Executive Shou Zi Chew will meet the European Union's antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager in Brussels on Jan. 10, a calendar released by the European Commission showed on Friday. Chew will also meet Values and Transparency Commissioner Vera Jourova and European Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson on the same day, the calendar showed. A spokesman for the European Commission said the meetings could be expected to cover issues such as the protection of personal data by online platforms such as TikTok and the implementation of the EU's Digital Services Act. He declined to comment on further specific details of the meetings or who requested them. Reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta and Bart Meijer Editing by David GoodmanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Dollar edges to one-week high vs yen amid spike in Treasury yields
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-28 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The dollar edged higher against its major peers on Wednesday, reaching a more than one-week top versus the yen, buoyed by higher Treasury yields as traders puzzled over the outlook for policy at the world's biggest central banks. The 10-year Treasury yield , which tends to be highly correlated to the dollar-yen pair, was at 3.843% in Tokyo, not far from the 1 1/2-month high of 3.862% reached overnight. "The dollar is in a very interesting situation," said Bart Wakabayashi, a branch manager at State Street in Tokyo. Sterling eased 0.06% to $1.2024, as it continued to hover just above its low for the month of $1.1993, reached on Dec. 22. The Australian dollar was flat at $0.6733, while the New Zealand dollar added 0.09% to $0.6279.

☆ Shell to pay 15 mln euros in settlement over Nigerian oil spills
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] A Shell logo is pictured during the European Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition (EBACE) in Geneva, Switzerland, May 23, 2022. REUTERS/Denis BalibouseCompanies Shell PLC FollowAMSTERDAM, Dec 23 (Reuters) - Shell (SHEL.L) will pay 15 million euros ($15.9 million) to communities in Nigeria that were affected by multiple oil pipeline leaks in the Niger Delta, the oil company on Friday said in a joint statement with the Dutch division of Friends of the Earth. The money will benefit the communities of Oruma, Goi and Ikot Ada Udo in Nigeria, that were impacted by four oil spills that occurred between 2004 and 2007. "The settlement is on a no admission of liability basis, and settles all claims and ends all pending litigation related to the spills," Shell said. After the appeals court's final ruling last year, Shell said it continued to believe the spills were caused by sabotage.

☆ Dutch pension giant ABP set to sell laggards as sharpens climate focus
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The new policy could halve the number of companies in ABP's portfolio, investment director Dominique Dijkhuis told Dutch financial daily FD in an interview published on Friday. Dijkhuis did not specify which companies would no longer be eligible for ABP, nor how long the overhaul would take. ABP said last year it would divest 15 billion euros of fossil fuel investments, which marked a major turnaround as only months before, it had said exiting fossil fuel investments would "not be the solution" to global warming. Dijkhuis said ABP would demand that companies commit to being climate neutral by 2050, and would also set progressively strict interim goals. The financial sector will not be excluded from this policy, as it will have to target loans into sustainable investments, Dijkhuis added.

☆ Philips says tests on recalled products show limited health risks
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-21 | by ( Bart H. Meijer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] Logo of Dutch technology company Philips is seen at its company headquarters in Amsterdam, Netherlands, January 29, 2019. REUTERS/Eva Plevier/File PhotoSummarySummary Companies Philips: Tests show DreamStation devices unlikely to cause harmFoam degradation more likely if unauthorised cleaners usedShares up 3.5%, after recall wiped 70% off market valueAMSTERDAM, Dec 21 (Reuters) - Dutch health technology company Philips (PHG.AS) said on Wednesday independent tests on its respiratory devices involved in a major global recall had shown limited health risks. Philips had already said earlier this year that tests indicated foam degradation was very rare and was linked to the use of unauthorised ozone-based cleaning products. It said further tests now showed machines cleaned with those products were 14 times more likely to have significant visible foam degradation than those treated with authorised products. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is still considering the results and "may reach different conclusions", Philips said.

☆ Japan jolts markets in surprise change to yield curve policy
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( Leika Kihara | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

In a move explained as seeking to breath life back into a dormant bond market, the BOJ decided to allow the 10-year bond yield to move 50 basis points either side of its 0% target, wider than the previous 25 basis point band. But the central bank kept its yield target unchanged and said it will sharply increase bond buying, a sign the move was a fine-tuning of existing ultra-loose monetary policy rather than a withdrawal of stimulus. "Today's step is aimed at improving market functions, thereby helping enhance the effect of our monetary easing. "This change will enhance the sustainability of our monetary policy framework. It's absolutely not a review that will lead to an abandonment of YCC or an exit from easy policy."

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