Barnier warned Britain it had to come up with a solution to avoid imposing a hard border between Ireland and British-ruled Northern Ireland if it wanted talks on its departure from the bloc to move on to trade.The Frenchman also said Britain would lose its "passporting" rights to let banks automatically do business in the EU after it leaves in March 2019.The EU is demanding Britain make sufficient progress on key areas including Northern Ireland and its Brexit bill before moving on to talks on future relations, including a possible trade deal and a transitional arrangement."If we manage to negotiate an orderly withdrawal and establish a level playing field, there is every reason for our future partnership to be ambitious. This is our preferred option," Barnier said in a speech in Brussels."This is why we have started internal preparations with member states to talk about the future as soon as we have agreed on how to settle the past," he told an event hosted the Centre for European … [Read more...] about EU ready for ‘most ambitious’ Brexit trade pact: Barnier
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EU to vote on relocation of agencies after Brexit
In a process only half-jokingly compared to the Eurovision Song Contest, ministers will vote on where to relocate the European Medicines Agency and European Banking Authority.British bookmaker Ladbrokes makes Bratislava, Milan and Amsterdam favourites to host the EMA, with Frankfurt, Vienna and Dublin lead the running for the EBA, although officials warned the secret ballot could throw up an unpredictable result.Governments have been jostling to win the backing of other countries with "hot bargaining" behind the scenes for two agencies that promise both prestige and prosperity, a diplomatic source told AFP.In total there are 19 candidates to be the new home of the EMA, one of the world's most powerful drugs watchdogs, which employs 900 pharmaceutical experts, biologists and doctors from every corner of Europe.There is a smaller batch of eight bidders for the EBA, the banking overseer with 159 staff. The EBA is perhaps best known for its regular stress tests on the EU's financial sector … [Read more...] about EU to vote on relocation of agencies after Brexit
EU firms call Vietnam’s central region home
Many more EuroCham member companies are operating in Central Vietnam than have been before. How have they performed over the past year? What are the new investment opportunities for them in this region?Outside of Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi, Danang and with it Central Vietnam is a leading trade and investment destination for European business. What we hear from our approximately 50 members doing business in the region is that they are very satisfied with their growth and are here to stay. Examples include the German web application development company Mgm Technology, which started at the end of 2015 and is now expanding their business, opening a second facility in Danang.Sioux, a tech company, helped Danang’s public transportation by launching its DANABUS app last year. Gameloft, a global gaming and software company, has been present and growing in Danang for 13 years and is a popular employer for talented IT graduates.These are but a few successful stories from the ICT … [Read more...] about EU firms call Vietnam’s central region home
EU to discuss Rohingya crisis with Myanmar’s Suu Kyi
The EU's foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said Sunday she would discuss ways to end the Rohingya crisis with Aung San Suu Kyi when she meets the Myanmar leader in Yangon. Mogherini shakes hand with Rohingya refugees at the Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh Mogherini and foreign ministers from Asia and Europe toured refugee camps along Bangladesh's border with Myanmar and heard harrowing testimony from displaced Rohingya there before their meeting Monday with Suu Kyi.Myanmar's civilian leader has been facing mounting global outrage over an army crackdown that has driven an estimated 620,000 Rohingya Muslims from the mainly Buddhist country's western state of Rakhine and into Bangladesh.Myanmar's military insists it has only targeted Rohingya rebels following deadly attacks on police posts in late August. But refugees massing in grim Bangladeshi camps have given chilling and consistent accounts of widespread murder, rape and arson at the hands of security … [Read more...] about EU to discuss Rohingya crisis with Myanmar’s Suu Kyi
Moody’s cuts ratings, outlooks on nine EU countries
Moody's on Monday chopped the debt ratings of Italy, Spain and Portugal and put France, Britain and Austria on warning, saying they were increasingly vulnerable to the eurozone crisis. People pass in front of luxury shops in Italy in January 2012. Casting doubt over whether Europe's leaders were doing enough to reverse the downslide of the region's economy and financial sector, Moody's also cut its ratings for Slovenia, Slovakia and Malta. The ratings agency cited the region's weak economic prospects as threatening "the implementation of domestic austerity programs and the structural reforms that are needed to promote competitiveness." Meanwhile, market confidence "is likely to remain fragile, with a high potential for further shocks to funding conditions for stressed sovereigns and banks." The agency also … [Read more...] about Moody’s cuts ratings, outlooks on nine EU countries