European Commission news and archive

EU prepares retaliatory tariffs on US goods amid trade dispute

The European Union has agreed on a multi-billion pound list of potential retaliatory tariffs of up to 30 percent in the trade dispute with the US. If negotiations fail, countermeasures could quickly be imposed on US exports to the EU worth more than 90 billion euros. The Deutsche Presse-Agentur learned this from EU sources. The retaliatory...

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US makes new offer to EU in tariff dispute

In the trade dispute with the EU, the US submitted a new offer. The European Commission confirmed on Thursday that it had received a relevant US document. It was being reviewed, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Thursday night after an EU summit. "We are ready for an agreement. At the same time, we are preparing for the...

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EU member states aim to significantly dilute supply chain act

EU member states sought to significantly dilute the European Supply Chain Act. A majority of countries voted to apply the human rights protection law only to companies with more than 5,000 employees, instead of the previous threshold of 1,000, the member states announced. In addition, the turnover threshold was to be raised from 450 million...

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Uncertainty over anti-greenwashing law: organisations respond

Uncertainty arose surrounding the proposed Green Claims Directive. In recent days, confusion emerged as to whether the European Commission’s anti-greenwashing legislation would proceed. Several organisations responded, issuing calls for clarity and prompt action. European textile organisation, Euratex, responded: “Euratex welcomed the Commission...

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Green Claims Directive: European Commission clarifies withdrawal of proposed law

The Green Claims Directive, also known as the anti-greenwashing law, may not be withdrawn after all. A commission spokesperson clarified that the withdrawal will only happen if a specific recent amendment is maintained. Spokesperson Paula Pinho noted that the amendment in question would bring small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) under the...

Fashion

Why fast fashion 'recycling' is not saving the planet

In H&M's flagship Paris store it is hard to find clothes that don't claim to be made from "recycled materials". Last year, 79 percent of the polyester in its collections came from recycled materials, and next year it wants it all to be recycled. The Swedish fast fashion giant told AFP that recycled material allows the "industry to reduce its...

Fashion

European Social Innovation Competition to award 150,000 EUR to sustainable fashion ideas

The 2020 edition of the European Social Innovation Competition, a prize established eight years ago by the European Commission, will be focusing on sustainable fashion innovations. Under the name Reimagine Fashion: Changing behaviours for sustainable fashion, this year’s competition is looking for projects aiming to change the ways clothes are...

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Retail

Visa & Mastercard to cut fees on payments made with foreign credit cards in Europe

The European Commission has accepted an offer by Visa and Mastercard to significantly reduce the fee European retailers need to pay to the cardholder’s bank when a tourist or online shopper makes a payment using a credit card issued outside the bloc. Known as Inter-regional interchange fees or inter-regional MIFs, these fees will now be reduced...

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European Commission hits Google with 1.5 billion EUR fine

1.49 billion euros: that’s how much the European Commission has fined Google for breaching EU antitrust rules one more time. According to the Commission, Google forced its AdSense clients to sign contracts prohibiting them from accepting advertising from rival search engines. Commenting on the fine, commissioner Margrethe Vestager, in charge of...

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European Commission investigates Nike’s tax status in the Netherlands

The European Commission has launched an in-depth investigation into Nike’s tax arrangements in the Netherlands, looking to examine whether the country’s tax administration body, Belastingdienst, has given the sportswear giant an unfair advantage over its competitors. Between 2006 and 2015, Dutch authorities issued five tax rulings, two of which...

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Fashion

European Commission fines Guess almost 40 million euros in new crusade against online distribution restrictions

Brussels - On 17 December 2018, the European Commission fined the clothing company Guess 39.8 million euros for infringing EU antitrust rules by imposing restrictions on retailers’ ability to compete online. Concerns included ‘geo-blocking’ (i.e., restrictions on the EU territories into which retailers were allowed to sell Guess products),...