Monday, March 25

Business

Sweden’s Largest Energy Exporter in Europe in 2022
Business, Europe, News, Sweden

Sweden’s Largest Energy Exporter in Europe in 2022

The energy crisis in Europe last year turned the energy trade upside down. For example, in 2022, Sweden will overtake France as the region's largest exporter. This was mainly because France had to shut down several obsolete nuclear power plants for maintenance work last year. Sweden sent 33 terawatt hours to other countries last year. The Scandinavian country thus became Europe's top exporter for the first time, according to data from ENTSO-E analyzed by consultancy Rystad Energy. ENTSO-E is the European Network of Electricity Transmission System Operators. France, which has many nuclear power plants, was still Europe's largest exporter of energy in 2021. However, the problems with the nuclear power plants made the country the second-largest energy importer by 2022. The United K...
Samsung Objects to ACM’s Million-Dollar Fine
Business, News, South Korea, Tech

Samsung Objects to ACM’s Million-Dollar Fine

The regulator has announced that the electronics and tech group Samsung is objecting to a fine imposed by the Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM). The South Korean company was fined nearly 40 million euros last year for influencing the prices charged by stores for Samsung televisions, which made customers more expensive. ACM declares Samsung's objection to being unfounded. As a result, Samsung can now challenge the fine in court. Whether the company does this is currently unknown. In its appeal, Samsung argued, among other things, that it is incorrect that the company has continuously monitored sales prices. According to the competition watchdog, Samsung regularly determined online sales prices of Samsung televisions from seven retailers from January 2013 to...
British Employers Want More Migrants to Compensate for Staff Shortages
Business, News, UK

British Employers Want More Migrants to Compensate for Staff Shortages

British employers, through the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), want more migrants to fill the labour shortage. However, CBI chief executive Tony Danker states, "a more flexible approach to immigration is needed to help the economy grow." However, Migration Minister Robert Jenrick believes employers should look to the home market rather than attracting low-skilled workers from outside. The United Kingdom has more than 1 million vacancies that are not filled. In addition, about 600,000 people are long-term sick, CBI has established, and will not soon return to the labour market. "That is why we are facing a major shortage of personnel," says Danker. According to him, we need to look beyond the borders to quickly compensate for several shortages before the labour market...
Facebook Parent Company Cuts One in Eight Jobs Worldwide
Business, News, Tech, US

Facebook Parent Company Cuts One in Eight Jobs Worldwide

Meta Platforms is cutting more than 11,000 jobs worldwide, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp has announced. That amounts to 13 percent of all jobs at the company. It is the first time there has been a major layoff in Meta's existence. The company is suffering from advertisers who spend less money on online advertising and higher costs due to increased interest rates and high inflation. In addition to the layoffs, Meta has also announced a job freeze until the end of the first quarter of next year. Meta Platforms also has an office in Amsterdam. It is not immediately clear how many jobs will be cut here.
Wild Weekend of Brand New Twitter Owner Elon Musk
Business, News, Tech

Wild Weekend of Brand New Twitter Owner Elon Musk

Elon Musk barely owns the microblogging site Twitter when he goes wild through his account. Last weekend he made it clear that freedom of expression is central to him. He did this by sharing conspiracy theories, among other things. In addition, it leaked that we are heading for price increases. They stood in front of Twitter's headquarters in San Francisco with cardboard boxes. Daniel Johnson and Rahul Ligma, two self-proclaimed engineers who claimed to have been fired by Elon Musk like the rest of their department. An American journalist from CNBC shared their story. "An entire team of data engineers fired," she wrote on Twitter with a photo of the two. "They are shocked. One of them, Daniel, has a Tesla and doesn't know how to pay the bills." The other, holding the biograph...
ECB Raises Interest Rates Sharply Again in Battle Against High Inflation
Business, Europe, News

ECB Raises Interest Rates Sharply Again in Battle Against High Inflation

The European Central Bank (ECB) raises its interest rates by three-quarters of a percentage point for the second time in a row. This equals the central bank's largest interest rate hike ever in the fight against sharply rising inflation in the eurozone. The ECB also indicates that further rate hikes are likely to be needed to bring inflation back to normal levels. Inflation is still far too high and will remain above the 2 percent target for an extended period, the interest rate decision statement said. Moreover, since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, life in the euro area has rapidly become more expensive. Energy prices, in particular, are skyrocketing. The idea behind the interest rate hikes is that borrowing becomes more expensive. So people and companies will eventually spend...
Eurozone Inflation Remains Just Below 10 Percent in September
Business, Europe, News

Eurozone Inflation Remains Just Below 10 Percent in September

Inflation in the euro area remained just below 10 percent in September. However, based on definitive figures, the European statistical office Eurostat reported that life in the euro area became 9.9 percent more expensive last month than a year ago. An inflation rate of exactly 10 percent was previously reported for September. However, in August, inflation was still 9.1 percent. Despite the slight adjustment, inflation has thus risen to a new record. Of course, inflation has been very high for some time because gas and electricity prices have risen sharply. But those higher energy costs are also increasingly affecting food prices. Inflation in the Netherlands is significantly higher than the average in the eurozone. According to the European measurement method, Dutch inflation...
Criticism of American Billion-Dollar Investment Energy Company RWE
Business, Europe, Germany, News, US

Criticism of American Billion-Dollar Investment Energy Company RWE

The German energy group RWE will invest billions in sustainable energy projects in the United States. It is one of the largest green deals ever in the US. But there is also criticism. An activist investor who has bought into RWE would rather see the energy company invest in the domestic energy sector. With the deal worth approximately 6.8 billion dollars (almost 7 billion euros), RWE is doubling its energy portfolio in the US to more than 7 gigawatts. The transaction is made partly by the investment fund of Qatar, which will become a major shareholder of RWE with an investment of more than 2 billion euros. Qatar and Germany signed an agreement in May to intensify their energy cooperation. But Benedikt Kormaier of investor Enkraft Capital, which holds about a million shares in...
Google Gets a European Fine of Billions Only Slightly Reduced
Business, Europe, News, Tech

Google Gets a European Fine of Billions Only Slightly Reduced

Google has rightly been fined billions by the European Commission. The European court found that the American tech company was guilty of pushing away competitors on Android phones and other devices. The fine will be slightly reduced, from EUR 4,340 million to EUR 4,125 million. The European Commission fined Google in 2018 for agreements with telephone makers and telecom providers to favour its search engine. As a result, rivals of the near-monopolist did not stand a chance, the committee ruled. So the tech company went to the General Court of the European Union to challenge the fine, the highest ever in the EU. Among other things, Google stipulated that phone manufacturers had to install its search engine and surfing software to use its essential app store. The internet compa...
Bitcoin Price Moves Towards the Low of Earlier This Year
Business, News, Tech

Bitcoin Price Moves Towards the Low of Earlier This Year

The value of bitcoin is moving towards the low of earlier this year. This week, the major digital currency lost more than 6 percent of its value, trading at $18,620 each. This decrease is partly responsible for the total market value of the crypto sector falling below 1 trillion dollars. Other currencies besides bitcoin also fell by about 6 percent this week. Rising interest rates, considered the real cost of borrowing, are putting enormous pressure on a range of risky investments, including cryptocurrencies. With bitcoin's decline this week, the currency is moving towards the low of $17,600 that was tapped earlier this year. "The macro story is very hard to let go of. " Kevin Loo of asset manager IDEG Asset Management told Bloomberg that it will set risky investments in moti...