CNBC
"Inflation is the 'biggest poison' for the global economy as recession risk rises, Deutsche Bank CEO says"
Elliot Smith
21 JUNE 2022
* The U.S. Federal Reserve, European Central Bank, Swiss National Bank and the Bank of England all moved to varying degrees to rein in inflation last week.
* "One thing is clear: if there is a sudden stop of Russian gas, the likelihood of a recession coming sooner is obviously far higher. There is no doubt," Sewing told CNBC's Annette Weisbach exclusively on Monday.
Europe and the U.S. face a high likelihood of recession as central banks are forced to aggressively tighten monetary policy to combat inflation, according to Deutsche Bank CEO Christian Sewing.
The U.S. Federal Reserve, European Central Bank, Swiss National Bank and the Bank of England all moved to rein in inflation last week, albeit to varying degrees.
Consumer price inflation in the euro zone hit a fresh record high of 8.1% in May and the ECB has confirmed its intention to begin hiking interest rates at its July meeting.
Central bank leaders and economists around the world have acknowledged that the aggressive tightening that may be necessary to rein in inflation could risk tipping economies into recession, with growth already slowing due to a confluence of global factors.
Europe's proximity to the war in Ukraine and its reliance on Russian energy imports render the continent uniquely vulnerable to the conflict and a potential stoppage of Russian gas flows.
"One thing is clear: if there is a sudden stop of Russian gas, the likelihood of a recession coming sooner is obviously far higher."
"There is no doubt," Sewing told CNBC's Annette Weisbach in an exclusive interview.
"But I would say that overall, we have such a challenging situation that the probability of a recession also in Germany, or in Europe in 2023 or the year after, is higher than we have seen it in any of the previous years, and that is not only the impact of this awful war, but look at the inflation, look at what that means for monetary policy."
Along with inflation stemming from the war in Ukraine and associated sanctions on Russia, supply chains have also been stymied by resurgent post-pandemic demand and a return of Covid-19 control measures, most notably in China.
"That is such a challenging situation that we have three, four drivers which can severely impact the economy, and all of that coming together in one and the same time means that there is enough pressure and a lot of pressure on the economy, and hence the likelihood of a recession coming into Europe, but also in the U.S., is quite high," Sewing said.
Sewing: Inflation 'really worries me most'
Given this confluence of challenges, Sewing said he is increasingly reluctant to rely on traditional models as the economy faces a "perfect storm" of "three or four real levers which can cause, at the end of the day, a recession."
Sewing said inflation was the biggest concern, however.
"I would say that the inflation is something that really worries me most and therefore I do think that the signal which we got from the central banks, be it the Fed but now also the ECB, is the right signal," he said.
"We need to fight inflation because at the end of the day, inflation is the biggest poison for the economy."
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets ... 3a1bfea2d4
THE EUROPEANS
Re: THE EUROPEANS
REUTERS
"Germany risks recession as Russian gas crisis deepens"
By Rachel More and Stine Jacobsen
June 21, 2022
Summary
* More Europeans activate first stage of gas crisis plans
* Surging gas price adds to policymakers' inflation headache
* Slowing flows hinder efforts to refill storage for winter
* 'We have a problem', says German regulator
BERLIN/COPENHAGEN, June 21 (Reuters) - Germany faces certain recession if faltering Russian gas supplies stop completely, an industry body warned on Tuesday, and Italy said it would consider offering financial backing to help companies refill gas storage to avoid a deeper crisis in winter.
European Union states from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Adriatic in the south have outlined measures to cope with a supply crisis after Russia's invasion of Ukraine put energy at the heart of an economic battle between Moscow and the West.
The EU relied on Russia for as much as 40% of its gas needs before the war - rising to 55% for Germany - leaving a huge gap to fill in an already tight global gas market.
Some countries have responded by temporarily reversing plans to shut coal power plants.
Gas prices have hit record levels, driving a surge in inflation and adding to challenges for policymakers trying to haul Europe back from an economic precipice.
Germany's BDI industry association on Tuesday cut its economic growth forecast for 2022 to 1.5% from the 3.5% expected before the war began on Feb. 24.
It said a halt in Russian gas deliveries would make recession in Europe's largest economy inevitable.
Russian gas is still being pumped via Ukraine but at a reduced rate.
The Nord Stream 1 pipeline under the Baltic, a vital supply route to Germany, is working at just 40% capacity.
Moscow says Western sanctions are hindering repairs; Europe says this is a pretext to reduce flows.
German Economy Minister Robert Habeck said the reduced supplies amounted to an economic attack and part of Russian President Vladimir Putin's plan to stir up fear.
"This is a new dimension," Habeck said.
"This strategy cannot be allowed to succeed."
The slowdown has hampered Europe's efforts to refill storage facilities, now about 55% full, to meet an EU-wide target of 80% by October and 90% by November, a level that would help see the bloc through winter if supplies were disrupted further.
On Tuesday, Italy's government announced initial measures to boost gas storage after energy company Eni reported a shortfall in flows from Russia for more than a week.
Ecological Transition Minister Roberto Cingolani said in a statement the government planned to purchase coal if it needed to use coal-fired power plants to save gas.
Cingolani also asked gas grid operator Snam to adopt measures to help bring gas stockpiles to around their targeted level for June.
The benchmark gas price for Europe was trading around 126 euros ($133) per megawatt hour (MWh), below this year's peak of 335 euros but up more than 300% from a year ago.
'WE HAVE A PROBLEM'
Countries other than Italy, including Austria, Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands, have activated the first early warning stage of a three-stage plan to cope with a gas supply crisis.
Germany's Bundesnetzagentur gas regulator outlined details of a new auction system to start in coming weeks, aimed at encouraging manufacturers to consume less gas.
The head of the Bundesnetzagentur questioned whether current gas deliveries would get the country through the winter.
Earlier, he said it was too soon to declare an all-out emergency, or the third stage of the crisis plan.
"As it stands today, we have a problem," Bundesnetzagentur President Klaus Mueller said on the sidelines of an industry event.
The CEO of Germany's largest power utility RWE Markus Krebber said Europe had little time to plan.
"How would we re-distribute the gas if we were fully cut off?"
"There is currently no plan ... at European level ... as every country is looking at their emergency plan," he told the same event.
Soaring European prices have attracted more liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargoes, but Europe lacks the infrastructure to meet all its needs from LNG, a market that was stretched even before the Ukraine war.
Disruptions to a major U.S. LNG producer added to the challenge.
Europe is seeking more pipeline supplies from its own producers, such as Norway, and other states, including Azerbaijan, but most producers are already pushing the limits of output.
Even small consumer Sweden has joined European allies in triggering the first stage of its energy crisis plan.
The state energy agency said supplies remained robust but it was signalling "to industry players and gas consumers connected to the western Swedish gas network, that the gas market is strained and a deteriorating gas supply situation may arise".
Sweden, where gas accounted for 3% of energy consumption in 2020, depends on piped gas supplies from Denmark, where storage facilities are now 75% full.
Denmark activated the first stage of its emergency plan on Monday.
Reporting by Rachel More and Paul Carrel in Berlin, Stine Jacobsen in Copenhagen, Nina Chestney in London, Giuseppe Fonte and Francesca Landini in Rome, Christoph Steitz and Vera Eckert in Frankfurt; Writing by Edmund Blair and Barbara Lewis; Editing by Carmel Crimmins, Mark Potter and David Gregorio
https://www.reuters.com/markets/europe/ ... 022-06-21/
"Germany risks recession as Russian gas crisis deepens"
By Rachel More and Stine Jacobsen
June 21, 2022
Summary
* More Europeans activate first stage of gas crisis plans
* Surging gas price adds to policymakers' inflation headache
* Slowing flows hinder efforts to refill storage for winter
* 'We have a problem', says German regulator
BERLIN/COPENHAGEN, June 21 (Reuters) - Germany faces certain recession if faltering Russian gas supplies stop completely, an industry body warned on Tuesday, and Italy said it would consider offering financial backing to help companies refill gas storage to avoid a deeper crisis in winter.
European Union states from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Adriatic in the south have outlined measures to cope with a supply crisis after Russia's invasion of Ukraine put energy at the heart of an economic battle between Moscow and the West.
The EU relied on Russia for as much as 40% of its gas needs before the war - rising to 55% for Germany - leaving a huge gap to fill in an already tight global gas market.
Some countries have responded by temporarily reversing plans to shut coal power plants.
Gas prices have hit record levels, driving a surge in inflation and adding to challenges for policymakers trying to haul Europe back from an economic precipice.
Germany's BDI industry association on Tuesday cut its economic growth forecast for 2022 to 1.5% from the 3.5% expected before the war began on Feb. 24.
It said a halt in Russian gas deliveries would make recession in Europe's largest economy inevitable.
Russian gas is still being pumped via Ukraine but at a reduced rate.
The Nord Stream 1 pipeline under the Baltic, a vital supply route to Germany, is working at just 40% capacity.
Moscow says Western sanctions are hindering repairs; Europe says this is a pretext to reduce flows.
German Economy Minister Robert Habeck said the reduced supplies amounted to an economic attack and part of Russian President Vladimir Putin's plan to stir up fear.
"This is a new dimension," Habeck said.
"This strategy cannot be allowed to succeed."
The slowdown has hampered Europe's efforts to refill storage facilities, now about 55% full, to meet an EU-wide target of 80% by October and 90% by November, a level that would help see the bloc through winter if supplies were disrupted further.
On Tuesday, Italy's government announced initial measures to boost gas storage after energy company Eni reported a shortfall in flows from Russia for more than a week.
Ecological Transition Minister Roberto Cingolani said in a statement the government planned to purchase coal if it needed to use coal-fired power plants to save gas.
Cingolani also asked gas grid operator Snam to adopt measures to help bring gas stockpiles to around their targeted level for June.
The benchmark gas price for Europe was trading around 126 euros ($133) per megawatt hour (MWh), below this year's peak of 335 euros but up more than 300% from a year ago.
'WE HAVE A PROBLEM'
Countries other than Italy, including Austria, Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands, have activated the first early warning stage of a three-stage plan to cope with a gas supply crisis.
Germany's Bundesnetzagentur gas regulator outlined details of a new auction system to start in coming weeks, aimed at encouraging manufacturers to consume less gas.
The head of the Bundesnetzagentur questioned whether current gas deliveries would get the country through the winter.
Earlier, he said it was too soon to declare an all-out emergency, or the third stage of the crisis plan.
"As it stands today, we have a problem," Bundesnetzagentur President Klaus Mueller said on the sidelines of an industry event.
The CEO of Germany's largest power utility RWE Markus Krebber said Europe had little time to plan.
"How would we re-distribute the gas if we were fully cut off?"
"There is currently no plan ... at European level ... as every country is looking at their emergency plan," he told the same event.
Soaring European prices have attracted more liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargoes, but Europe lacks the infrastructure to meet all its needs from LNG, a market that was stretched even before the Ukraine war.
Disruptions to a major U.S. LNG producer added to the challenge.
Europe is seeking more pipeline supplies from its own producers, such as Norway, and other states, including Azerbaijan, but most producers are already pushing the limits of output.
Even small consumer Sweden has joined European allies in triggering the first stage of its energy crisis plan.
The state energy agency said supplies remained robust but it was signalling "to industry players and gas consumers connected to the western Swedish gas network, that the gas market is strained and a deteriorating gas supply situation may arise".
Sweden, where gas accounted for 3% of energy consumption in 2020, depends on piped gas supplies from Denmark, where storage facilities are now 75% full.
Denmark activated the first stage of its emergency plan on Monday.
Reporting by Rachel More and Paul Carrel in Berlin, Stine Jacobsen in Copenhagen, Nina Chestney in London, Giuseppe Fonte and Francesca Landini in Rome, Christoph Steitz and Vera Eckert in Frankfurt; Writing by Edmund Blair and Barbara Lewis; Editing by Carmel Crimmins, Mark Potter and David Gregorio
https://www.reuters.com/markets/europe/ ... 022-06-21/
Re: THE EUROPEANS
REUTERS
"Germany triggers gas alarm stage, accuses Russia of 'economic attack'"
By Holger Hansen, Vera Eckert
JUNE 23, 2022
BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany triggered the “alarm stage” of its emergency gas plan on Thursday in response to falling Russian supplies but stopped short of allowing utilities to pass on soaring energy costs to customers in Europe’s largest economy.
The measure is the latest escalation in a standoff between Europe and Moscow since the Russian invasion of Ukraine that has exposed the bloc’s dependence on Russian gas supplies and sparked a frantic search for alternative energy sources.
The step is a largely symbolic signal to companies and households but marks a major shift for Germany, which cultivated strong energy ties with Moscow stretching back to the Cold War.
Lower gas flows sparked warnings this week that Germany could fall into recession if Russian supplies halted altogether.
A survey on Thursday showed the economy losing momentum in the second quarter.
“We must not fool ourselves: The cut in gas supplies is an economic attack on us by (Russian President Vladimir) Putin,” Economy Minister Robert Habeck said in a statement.
Gas rationing would hopefully be avoided but cannot be ruled out, Habeck said:
“From now on, gas is a scarce commodity in Germany ..."
"We are therefore now obliged to reduce gas consumption, now already in summer.”
Russia has denied the supply cuts were deliberate, with state supplier Gazprom blaming a delay in the return of serviced equipment caused by Western sanctions.
The Kremlin on Thursday said Russia “strictly fulfils all its obligations” to Europe.
Berlin will provide a 15 billion euro ($15.76 billion) credit line to fill gas storage and launch a gas auction model this summer to encourage industrial users to save gas.
The second “alarm stage” of a three-stage emergency plan means authorities see a high risk of long-term supply shortages.
It includes a clause allowing utilities to immediately pass on high prices to industry and households.
Habeck said Germany was not at that point, but the clause might get triggered if the supply squeeze and price gains persisted, pushing power companies deeper into the red.
“If this minus becomes so big that the companies can’t bear it any more and they fall down, the whole market threatens to fall down at some point - so a Lehman Brothers effect in the energy system,” he said, referring to the U.S. investment bank’s 2008 collapse that rippled through global financial markets.
Local utility association VKU asked the government to protect consumers with subsidies or risk utilities going bust because of low-income retail customers defaulting on payments.
The President of the Federal Network Agency, Klaus Mueller, believed it was possible for consumer prices for gas to triple.
“If you extrapolate it, it depends a lot on how you heat, how your building is built, but it can triple the previous gas bill,” he told RTL/ntv broadcasters.
The move to Phase 2 had been anticipated since Gazprom cut flows via the Nord Stream 1 pipeline across the Baltic Sea to just 40% of capacity last week.
Data released on Thursday showed Germany has imported 22% less natural gas in the first four months of 2022 but the cost surged 170% over the same period.
Facing dwindling deliveries from main supplier Russia, Germany has since late March been at Phase 1, which includes stricter monitoring of daily flows and a focus on filling gas storage facilities.
“The declaration of the alarm stage does not immediately change the fundamental status quo,” German energy provider E.ON said.
It was important, though, that the government was preparing and taking steps to stabilize markets and gas supply, it said an emailed statement to Reuters.
RISK OF FULL DISRUPTION
In the second stage, the market is still able to function without the need for state intervention that would kick in the final emergency stage.
Nord Stream 1 is due to undergo maintenance on July 11-21 when flows will stop.
Hanns Koenig of consultancy Aurora Energy Services in Berlin said Gazprom might find reasons to drag out the process.
“Extended maintenance of Nord Stream 1 would further tighten the market and make it harder to fill gas storage until winter."
"This is of course in Russia’s strategic interest.”
Russia may cut off gas to Europe entirely to bolster its political leverage, the head of the International Energy Agency (IEA) warned on Wednesday, urging Europe to prepare now.
Russian gas flows to Europe via Nord Stream 1 and through Ukraine were stable on Thursday, while reverse flows on the Yamal pipeline edged up, operator data showed.
Dutch wholesale gas prices, the European benchmark, rose as much as 8% on Thursday.
Several countries have outlined measures to withstand a supply squeeze and avert winter energy shortages and an inflation spike that could test Europe’s resolve to maintain sanctions on Russia.
Supply cuts have driven German companies to contemplate painful production cuts and resorting to polluting energy sources previously considered unthinkable.
The European Union and Norway unveiled a deal on Thursday allowing the bloc to tap more gas from western Europe’s biggest producer.
The EU also signalled a temporary return to coal to plug the gap after calling Moscow’s gas supply cuts “rogue moves.”
Its climate policy chief Frans Timmermans said 10 of the EU’s 27 member countries have issued an “early warning” on gas supply - the first of three crisis levels.
“The risk of full gas disruption is now more real than ever before,” he said.
Reporting by Holger Hansen, Christoph Steitz, Christian Kraemer, Vera Eckert, Tom Sims, Marwa Rashad, Kate Abnett, Nora Buli, Tom Käckenhoff, Paul Carrel, Miranda Murray and Riham Alkousaa; writing by Matthias Williams; Editing by Tomasz Janowski, Elaine Hardcastle
https://www.reuters.com/article/ukraine ... SKBN2O40C2
"Germany triggers gas alarm stage, accuses Russia of 'economic attack'"
By Holger Hansen, Vera Eckert
JUNE 23, 2022
BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany triggered the “alarm stage” of its emergency gas plan on Thursday in response to falling Russian supplies but stopped short of allowing utilities to pass on soaring energy costs to customers in Europe’s largest economy.
The measure is the latest escalation in a standoff between Europe and Moscow since the Russian invasion of Ukraine that has exposed the bloc’s dependence on Russian gas supplies and sparked a frantic search for alternative energy sources.
The step is a largely symbolic signal to companies and households but marks a major shift for Germany, which cultivated strong energy ties with Moscow stretching back to the Cold War.
Lower gas flows sparked warnings this week that Germany could fall into recession if Russian supplies halted altogether.
A survey on Thursday showed the economy losing momentum in the second quarter.
“We must not fool ourselves: The cut in gas supplies is an economic attack on us by (Russian President Vladimir) Putin,” Economy Minister Robert Habeck said in a statement.
Gas rationing would hopefully be avoided but cannot be ruled out, Habeck said:
“From now on, gas is a scarce commodity in Germany ..."
"We are therefore now obliged to reduce gas consumption, now already in summer.”
Russia has denied the supply cuts were deliberate, with state supplier Gazprom blaming a delay in the return of serviced equipment caused by Western sanctions.
The Kremlin on Thursday said Russia “strictly fulfils all its obligations” to Europe.
Berlin will provide a 15 billion euro ($15.76 billion) credit line to fill gas storage and launch a gas auction model this summer to encourage industrial users to save gas.
The second “alarm stage” of a three-stage emergency plan means authorities see a high risk of long-term supply shortages.
It includes a clause allowing utilities to immediately pass on high prices to industry and households.
Habeck said Germany was not at that point, but the clause might get triggered if the supply squeeze and price gains persisted, pushing power companies deeper into the red.
“If this minus becomes so big that the companies can’t bear it any more and they fall down, the whole market threatens to fall down at some point - so a Lehman Brothers effect in the energy system,” he said, referring to the U.S. investment bank’s 2008 collapse that rippled through global financial markets.
Local utility association VKU asked the government to protect consumers with subsidies or risk utilities going bust because of low-income retail customers defaulting on payments.
The President of the Federal Network Agency, Klaus Mueller, believed it was possible for consumer prices for gas to triple.
“If you extrapolate it, it depends a lot on how you heat, how your building is built, but it can triple the previous gas bill,” he told RTL/ntv broadcasters.
The move to Phase 2 had been anticipated since Gazprom cut flows via the Nord Stream 1 pipeline across the Baltic Sea to just 40% of capacity last week.
Data released on Thursday showed Germany has imported 22% less natural gas in the first four months of 2022 but the cost surged 170% over the same period.
Facing dwindling deliveries from main supplier Russia, Germany has since late March been at Phase 1, which includes stricter monitoring of daily flows and a focus on filling gas storage facilities.
“The declaration of the alarm stage does not immediately change the fundamental status quo,” German energy provider E.ON said.
It was important, though, that the government was preparing and taking steps to stabilize markets and gas supply, it said an emailed statement to Reuters.
RISK OF FULL DISRUPTION
In the second stage, the market is still able to function without the need for state intervention that would kick in the final emergency stage.
Nord Stream 1 is due to undergo maintenance on July 11-21 when flows will stop.
Hanns Koenig of consultancy Aurora Energy Services in Berlin said Gazprom might find reasons to drag out the process.
“Extended maintenance of Nord Stream 1 would further tighten the market and make it harder to fill gas storage until winter."
"This is of course in Russia’s strategic interest.”
Russia may cut off gas to Europe entirely to bolster its political leverage, the head of the International Energy Agency (IEA) warned on Wednesday, urging Europe to prepare now.
Russian gas flows to Europe via Nord Stream 1 and through Ukraine were stable on Thursday, while reverse flows on the Yamal pipeline edged up, operator data showed.
Dutch wholesale gas prices, the European benchmark, rose as much as 8% on Thursday.
Several countries have outlined measures to withstand a supply squeeze and avert winter energy shortages and an inflation spike that could test Europe’s resolve to maintain sanctions on Russia.
Supply cuts have driven German companies to contemplate painful production cuts and resorting to polluting energy sources previously considered unthinkable.
The European Union and Norway unveiled a deal on Thursday allowing the bloc to tap more gas from western Europe’s biggest producer.
The EU also signalled a temporary return to coal to plug the gap after calling Moscow’s gas supply cuts “rogue moves.”
Its climate policy chief Frans Timmermans said 10 of the EU’s 27 member countries have issued an “early warning” on gas supply - the first of three crisis levels.
“The risk of full gas disruption is now more real than ever before,” he said.
Reporting by Holger Hansen, Christoph Steitz, Christian Kraemer, Vera Eckert, Tom Sims, Marwa Rashad, Kate Abnett, Nora Buli, Tom Käckenhoff, Paul Carrel, Miranda Murray and Riham Alkousaa; writing by Matthias Williams; Editing by Tomasz Janowski, Elaine Hardcastle
https://www.reuters.com/article/ukraine ... SKBN2O40C2
Re: THE EUROPEANS
REUTERS
"U.S. recession fears darken outlook for global growth"
By Lucia Mutikani, Jonathan Cable and Leika Kihara
June 23, 2022
WASHINGTON/LONDON/TOKYO, June 23 (Reuters) - Manufacturing growth is slowing worldwide as China's COVID-19 curbs and Russia's invasion of Ukraine disrupt supply chains and keep inflation at the highest in years, while the growing risk of a U.S. recession poses a new threat to the global economy.
Gauges of factory activity released Thursday in Japan, Britain, the euro zone and United States all softened in June, with U.S. producers reporting the first outright drop in new orders in two years in the face of slumping consumer and business confidence.
S&P Global's flash U.S. Composite PMI Output Index, which tracks the manufacturing and services sectors, dropped to 51.2 this month from a final reading of 53.6 in May and the slowest growth pace in five months.
The manufacturing component dropped to 52.4, the lowest in nearly two years, from 57 in May and was notably weaker than the estimate of 56 in a Reuters poll of economists.
"Business confidence is now at a level which would typically herald an economic downturn, adding to the risk of recession," said Chris Williamson, chief business economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence.
Meanwhile, high prices in the euro zone meant demand for manufactured goods fell in June at the fastest rate since May 2020 when the coronavirus pandemic was taking hold, with S&P Global's headline factory Purchasing Managers' Index falling to a near two-year low.
"June's euro zone PMI surveys showed a further slowdown in the services sector, while output in the manufacturing sector now seems to be falling outright," said Jack Allen-Reynolds at Capital Economics.
"With the price indices remaining extremely strong, the euro zone appears to have entered a period of stagflation."
There is a roughly one-in-three chance of a recession in the bloc within 12 months, economists in a Reuters poll published earlier on Thursday predicted.
They also said inflation - which hit a record high of high of 8.1% last month - was yet to peak.
Jerome Powell, chair of the Federal Reserve, said on Wednesday the central bank was not trying to engineer a recession in the United States to stop inflation but was fully committed to bringing prices under control even if doing so risks an economic downturn.
He acknowledged a recession was "certainly a possibility".
Inflation continues to run at least three times higher than the Fed's targeted level of 2% and it is expected to deliver another 75 basis point interest rate hike next month, according to economists polled by Reuters.
Despite Powell's comments a few primary dealers have either started predicting a recession as early as this year or have brought forward their recession calls.
U.S. investment firm PIMCO warned on Wednesday that central banks tightening monetary policy to fight persistently high inflation raised the recessionary risk.
There is a 40% chance of a U.S. recession over the next two years, with a 25% chance of that happening in the coming year, a Reuters poll found earlier this month.
"Stagflation, which is characterised by persistent high inflation, high unemployment and weak demand, has become the dominant risk theme since late 1Q22 and a plausible potential risk scenario," said Fitch Ratings in a report released this week.
A string of recent data globally showed policymakers are walking a tight rope as they try to defuse inflation pressures without tipping their economies into a steep downturn.
U.S. retail sales unexpectedly fell in May and existing home sales tumbled to a two-year low, a sign high inflation and rising borrowing costs were starting to hurt demand.
Britain's economy unexpectedly shrank in April, adding to fears of a sharp slowdown as companies complain of rising production costs.
Its PMI also showed signs the economy was stalling as high inflation hit new orders and businesses reported levels of concern that normally signal a recession.
There is a 35% chance of a British recession within 12 months, another Reuters poll showed.
In Asia, South Korea's exports for the first 10 days of June shrank almost 13% year-on-year, underscoring the heightening risk to the region's export-driven economies.
While Chinese exporters enjoyed solid sales in May, helped by easing domestic COVID-19 curbs, many analysts expect a more challenging outlook for the world's second-biggest economy due to the Ukraine war and rising raw material costs.
The au Jibun Bank flash Japan Manufacturing PMI marked its slowest expansion since February.
Reporting by Lucia Mutikani in Washington, Jonathan Cable in London and Leika Kihara in Tokyo; Editing by Shri Navaratnam and Toby Chopra
https://www.reuters.com/markets/europe/ ... 022-06-23/
"U.S. recession fears darken outlook for global growth"
By Lucia Mutikani, Jonathan Cable and Leika Kihara
June 23, 2022
WASHINGTON/LONDON/TOKYO, June 23 (Reuters) - Manufacturing growth is slowing worldwide as China's COVID-19 curbs and Russia's invasion of Ukraine disrupt supply chains and keep inflation at the highest in years, while the growing risk of a U.S. recession poses a new threat to the global economy.
Gauges of factory activity released Thursday in Japan, Britain, the euro zone and United States all softened in June, with U.S. producers reporting the first outright drop in new orders in two years in the face of slumping consumer and business confidence.
S&P Global's flash U.S. Composite PMI Output Index, which tracks the manufacturing and services sectors, dropped to 51.2 this month from a final reading of 53.6 in May and the slowest growth pace in five months.
The manufacturing component dropped to 52.4, the lowest in nearly two years, from 57 in May and was notably weaker than the estimate of 56 in a Reuters poll of economists.
"Business confidence is now at a level which would typically herald an economic downturn, adding to the risk of recession," said Chris Williamson, chief business economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence.
Meanwhile, high prices in the euro zone meant demand for manufactured goods fell in June at the fastest rate since May 2020 when the coronavirus pandemic was taking hold, with S&P Global's headline factory Purchasing Managers' Index falling to a near two-year low.
"June's euro zone PMI surveys showed a further slowdown in the services sector, while output in the manufacturing sector now seems to be falling outright," said Jack Allen-Reynolds at Capital Economics.
"With the price indices remaining extremely strong, the euro zone appears to have entered a period of stagflation."
There is a roughly one-in-three chance of a recession in the bloc within 12 months, economists in a Reuters poll published earlier on Thursday predicted.
They also said inflation - which hit a record high of high of 8.1% last month - was yet to peak.
Jerome Powell, chair of the Federal Reserve, said on Wednesday the central bank was not trying to engineer a recession in the United States to stop inflation but was fully committed to bringing prices under control even if doing so risks an economic downturn.
He acknowledged a recession was "certainly a possibility".
Inflation continues to run at least three times higher than the Fed's targeted level of 2% and it is expected to deliver another 75 basis point interest rate hike next month, according to economists polled by Reuters.
Despite Powell's comments a few primary dealers have either started predicting a recession as early as this year or have brought forward their recession calls.
U.S. investment firm PIMCO warned on Wednesday that central banks tightening monetary policy to fight persistently high inflation raised the recessionary risk.
There is a 40% chance of a U.S. recession over the next two years, with a 25% chance of that happening in the coming year, a Reuters poll found earlier this month.
"Stagflation, which is characterised by persistent high inflation, high unemployment and weak demand, has become the dominant risk theme since late 1Q22 and a plausible potential risk scenario," said Fitch Ratings in a report released this week.
A string of recent data globally showed policymakers are walking a tight rope as they try to defuse inflation pressures without tipping their economies into a steep downturn.
U.S. retail sales unexpectedly fell in May and existing home sales tumbled to a two-year low, a sign high inflation and rising borrowing costs were starting to hurt demand.
Britain's economy unexpectedly shrank in April, adding to fears of a sharp slowdown as companies complain of rising production costs.
Its PMI also showed signs the economy was stalling as high inflation hit new orders and businesses reported levels of concern that normally signal a recession.
There is a 35% chance of a British recession within 12 months, another Reuters poll showed.
In Asia, South Korea's exports for the first 10 days of June shrank almost 13% year-on-year, underscoring the heightening risk to the region's export-driven economies.
While Chinese exporters enjoyed solid sales in May, helped by easing domestic COVID-19 curbs, many analysts expect a more challenging outlook for the world's second-biggest economy due to the Ukraine war and rising raw material costs.
The au Jibun Bank flash Japan Manufacturing PMI marked its slowest expansion since February.
Reporting by Lucia Mutikani in Washington, Jonathan Cable in London and Leika Kihara in Tokyo; Editing by Shri Navaratnam and Toby Chopra
https://www.reuters.com/markets/europe/ ... 022-06-23/
Re: THE EUROPEANS
BUSINESS INSIDER
"Germany says its energy crisis may trigger Lehman-like contagion as the country moves a step toward to natural-gas rationing"
htan@insider.com (Huileng Tan)
24 JUNE 2022
* Germany's economy minister warns of a "market collapse" if natural-gas prices continue to soar.
* Germany has triggered the second stage of its three-stage emergency gas plan on supply fears.
* That's after Russia —citing a techincal reason — slowed piped natural-gas supplies to Germany.
Germany warned the country's energy crisis may trigger a "Lehman effect" across the utility sector as it moved one step closer to rationing natural gas.
Germany — Europe's largest economy — moved into the second of its three-stage emergency gas plan on Thursday after Russia slowed supplies to the country, exacerbating concerns over an energy crunch.
These supply fears have already driven European natural gas futures up by 85% year-to-date.
Under the second stage of Germany's emergency gas plan, utility companies can pass on price increases to customers.
The government is holding back on triggering the clause for now.
But Habeck said they could kick in if the supply crunch and price increases persist, as energy suppliers that buy power on the wholesale market are running up losses and many could ultimately fail as a result.
"If this minus gets so big that they can't carry it anymore, the whole market is in danger of collapsing at some point — so a Lehman effect in the energy system," said German economy minister Robert Habeck at a press conference, according to a Bloomberg translation.
Habeck was referring to financial services firm Lehman Brothers, which filed for bankruptcy in 2008 amid the subprime mortgage crisis — which spilled over and caused the Global Financial Crisis.
Natural gas accounts for about a quarter of the country's energy mix, according to the economy ministry.
About 35% of that total comes from Russia.
Russian state gas giant Gazprom has cut natural-gas supplies via the Nord Stream pipeline to Germany — which also goes to the rest of Europe — by more than half since last week, citing an equipment hold-up in Canada as a result of sanctions over the Ukraine war.
The cut may not be hitting Germany as badly now as it would in the winter because consumption typically troughs in summer.
But Europe's in the thick of a summer heatwave now, driving up natural-gas demand for cooling systems.
Russia's decision to choke off supply raises questions about how the region can prepare for the crucial winter months, when consumption is far higher.
"The situation is serious and winter will come," Habeck warned, according to a statement from the German economy ministry.
"It will be a rocky road that we as a country now have to walk."
"Even if you don't really feel it yet: we are in a gas crisis."
"Gas is now a scarce commodity."
If the situation worsens, under the plan Germany may start rationing gas as a last resort, as outlined by the country's economy ministry.
German industry association BDI said a recession would be inevitable if Russian natural gas supplies were halted, Reuters reported on Tuesday.
"We mustn't delude ourselves: cutting gas supplies is an economic attack on us by Putin," said Habeck in a statement on Wednesday.
"It is clearly Putin's strategy to create insecurity, drive up prices and divide us as a society."
"We will defend ourselves against this."
Moscow insisted the cut in supplies was technical.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said it was "strange" for Germany to say the natural-gas supply cut was politically motivated, AFP reported.
Germany is restarting some coal power plants to deal with the energy crisis — a significant move as the country plans to phase out coal — the dirtiest, most carbon-intensive fossil fuel — by 2030.
It also plans to increase its imports of liquefied natural gas — a supercooled version of the fuel that can be transported via ships over long distances.
Germany aims to wean itself off Russian natural-gas imports by 2024, Habeck said in a March 25 press release.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets ... 322cf532f5
"Germany says its energy crisis may trigger Lehman-like contagion as the country moves a step toward to natural-gas rationing"
htan@insider.com (Huileng Tan)
24 JUNE 2022
* Germany's economy minister warns of a "market collapse" if natural-gas prices continue to soar.
* Germany has triggered the second stage of its three-stage emergency gas plan on supply fears.
* That's after Russia —citing a techincal reason — slowed piped natural-gas supplies to Germany.
Germany warned the country's energy crisis may trigger a "Lehman effect" across the utility sector as it moved one step closer to rationing natural gas.
Germany — Europe's largest economy — moved into the second of its three-stage emergency gas plan on Thursday after Russia slowed supplies to the country, exacerbating concerns over an energy crunch.
These supply fears have already driven European natural gas futures up by 85% year-to-date.
Under the second stage of Germany's emergency gas plan, utility companies can pass on price increases to customers.
The government is holding back on triggering the clause for now.
But Habeck said they could kick in if the supply crunch and price increases persist, as energy suppliers that buy power on the wholesale market are running up losses and many could ultimately fail as a result.
"If this minus gets so big that they can't carry it anymore, the whole market is in danger of collapsing at some point — so a Lehman effect in the energy system," said German economy minister Robert Habeck at a press conference, according to a Bloomberg translation.
Habeck was referring to financial services firm Lehman Brothers, which filed for bankruptcy in 2008 amid the subprime mortgage crisis — which spilled over and caused the Global Financial Crisis.
Natural gas accounts for about a quarter of the country's energy mix, according to the economy ministry.
About 35% of that total comes from Russia.
Russian state gas giant Gazprom has cut natural-gas supplies via the Nord Stream pipeline to Germany — which also goes to the rest of Europe — by more than half since last week, citing an equipment hold-up in Canada as a result of sanctions over the Ukraine war.
The cut may not be hitting Germany as badly now as it would in the winter because consumption typically troughs in summer.
But Europe's in the thick of a summer heatwave now, driving up natural-gas demand for cooling systems.
Russia's decision to choke off supply raises questions about how the region can prepare for the crucial winter months, when consumption is far higher.
"The situation is serious and winter will come," Habeck warned, according to a statement from the German economy ministry.
"It will be a rocky road that we as a country now have to walk."
"Even if you don't really feel it yet: we are in a gas crisis."
"Gas is now a scarce commodity."
If the situation worsens, under the plan Germany may start rationing gas as a last resort, as outlined by the country's economy ministry.
German industry association BDI said a recession would be inevitable if Russian natural gas supplies were halted, Reuters reported on Tuesday.
"We mustn't delude ourselves: cutting gas supplies is an economic attack on us by Putin," said Habeck in a statement on Wednesday.
"It is clearly Putin's strategy to create insecurity, drive up prices and divide us as a society."
"We will defend ourselves against this."
Moscow insisted the cut in supplies was technical.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said it was "strange" for Germany to say the natural-gas supply cut was politically motivated, AFP reported.
Germany is restarting some coal power plants to deal with the energy crisis — a significant move as the country plans to phase out coal — the dirtiest, most carbon-intensive fossil fuel — by 2030.
It also plans to increase its imports of liquefied natural gas — a supercooled version of the fuel that can be transported via ships over long distances.
Germany aims to wean itself off Russian natural-gas imports by 2024, Habeck said in a March 25 press release.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets ... 322cf532f5
Re: THE EUROPEANS
REUTERS
"The 'Big Package': How Russia was driven to default"
By Marc Jones
JUNE 27, 2022
LONDON (Reuters) - Russia’s first major international debt default in over a century, which Washington said became a fact on Monday, follows months of co-ordinated Western sanctions that left Moscow with cash but no access to the international financial network.
Below is a summary of the key moments that have led up to this point.
THE “BIG PACKAGE”
At around 11.30 p.m. (2230 GMT) on Feb. 25, the day after Russian troops entered Ukraine, European Union’s experts in Brussels said a set of sanctions they had worked on for days, or the “Big Package” as they called it, was ready.
Just before midnight, the European Commission announced the measures.
While emergency Group of Seven and EU meetings earlier made clear a response was coming, the package named Vladimir Putin and his top diplomat Sergei Lavrov personally, and, as it later became clear, froze some $300 billion of the Russian central bank’s reserves.
“That was really the moment when we said, okay, well we’ve done it,” one European source told Reuters.
“That was, I think, a very pivotal moment for a lot of people around a table.”
SWIFT ACTION
Days later, on March 2, the EU struck again by banning seven Russian banks from SWIFT, an international financial messaging system crucial for cross-border transactions.
Booting Russian lenders from SWIFT had long been considered a ‘nuclear option,’ but the invasion put it on the table and when the EU decided to activate it, those at SWIFT headquarters just outside Brussels were ready.
The only question was how long they had to implement the move, “five days or five minutes?” another source said.
In the end is was 10-12 days.
FIRST CUTS, BUT NOT THE DEEPEST
Credit rating agency, S&P Global, already stripped Moscow of its coveted investment grade rating on Feb. 26 and Russian bonds were slumping, but a heavier blow followed on March 15, when the EU told top credit agencies to stop rating Russian dept or risk losing their licenses to operate in the bloc.
“We were caught flat-footed, certainly we were not given any advanced warning,” one senior rating agency analyst said.
“Basically the question was, does this mean we can’t rate Russia any more?”
It turned out the answer was yes.
DEFAULT DEADLINE ONE
With so many hurdles being erected, expectations built that Russia would default on its first post-sanctions’ bond payments either on March 16, or a month later at the end of a 30-day “grace period.”
However, a special “waiver” in the U.S. sanctions granted by the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control allowed payments to go through.
UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES
On April 8, a week before the EU ban on Russian ratings was due to come into force, S&P declared Russia in “selective default” after Moscow said it planned to make upcoming bond payments in roubles rather than dollars, their issue currency.
On May 3 though, shortly before the payment was due, the Kremlin U-turned and paid in dollars.
SHOCK TO THE SYSTEM
Days later, Russia had stumbled, though.
On May 11, sharp-eyed creditors spotted that Moscow had failed to add $1.9 million of extra interest that had built up on bonds that only got paid in their grace periods rather than on time.
They contacted the clearing house Euroclear and then bond market equivalent of an insurance payment arbiter - the Credit Derivative Determinations Committee here which ruled that a "credit event" had happened.
The sum was too small to trigger default clauses in all of Russia’s international bonds, but it did mean some investors expected to receive default insurance payments.
But when the U.S. Treasury clarified on its website that buying Russian bonds on the open, or ‘secondary’ market, was banned, that credit default swap (CDS) insurance process had to be halted as it was no longer clear what to do with the bonds involved.
“It is a bit like if your house burns down and the insurance company turns around and claims it was the wrong kind of fire,” said Joe Delvaux, emerging markets distressed debt portfolio manager at Europe’s largest fund manager Amundi.
“The reality is that these sanctions are a shock to the system.”
INTENDED CONSEQUENCES
The step that made Russia’s default unavoidable though was Washington’s May 24 decision to let the waiver that had allowed U.S. bondholders to receive Russia’s payments, expire.
A week later, the EU also sanctioned Russia’s domestic paying agent, its National Settlement Depository (NSD), which it had been using to make the payments.
Moscow has blamed the West for forcing an “artificial default”, with its finance minister Anton Siluanov calling the situation a “farce.”
However, veteran global policymakers involved in the process say the sanctions are unprecedented but fully justified.
“They were very significant actions that responded to the magnitude of the actions that Russia undertook,” Agustin Carstens, the head of the world’s central bank umbrella body, the Bank for International Settlements, said.
Additional reporting by John O’Donnell in Frankfurt, Francesco Guarascio in Brussels, Andrew MacAskill, Karin Strohecker and Vincent Flasseur in London and Gavin Jones in Milan; Editing by Tomasz Janowski
https://www.reuters.com/article/ukraine ... SL8N2YE3N4
"The 'Big Package': How Russia was driven to default"
By Marc Jones
JUNE 27, 2022
LONDON (Reuters) - Russia’s first major international debt default in over a century, which Washington said became a fact on Monday, follows months of co-ordinated Western sanctions that left Moscow with cash but no access to the international financial network.
Below is a summary of the key moments that have led up to this point.
THE “BIG PACKAGE”
At around 11.30 p.m. (2230 GMT) on Feb. 25, the day after Russian troops entered Ukraine, European Union’s experts in Brussels said a set of sanctions they had worked on for days, or the “Big Package” as they called it, was ready.
Just before midnight, the European Commission announced the measures.
While emergency Group of Seven and EU meetings earlier made clear a response was coming, the package named Vladimir Putin and his top diplomat Sergei Lavrov personally, and, as it later became clear, froze some $300 billion of the Russian central bank’s reserves.
“That was really the moment when we said, okay, well we’ve done it,” one European source told Reuters.
“That was, I think, a very pivotal moment for a lot of people around a table.”
SWIFT ACTION
Days later, on March 2, the EU struck again by banning seven Russian banks from SWIFT, an international financial messaging system crucial for cross-border transactions.
Booting Russian lenders from SWIFT had long been considered a ‘nuclear option,’ but the invasion put it on the table and when the EU decided to activate it, those at SWIFT headquarters just outside Brussels were ready.
The only question was how long they had to implement the move, “five days or five minutes?” another source said.
In the end is was 10-12 days.
FIRST CUTS, BUT NOT THE DEEPEST
Credit rating agency, S&P Global, already stripped Moscow of its coveted investment grade rating on Feb. 26 and Russian bonds were slumping, but a heavier blow followed on March 15, when the EU told top credit agencies to stop rating Russian dept or risk losing their licenses to operate in the bloc.
“We were caught flat-footed, certainly we were not given any advanced warning,” one senior rating agency analyst said.
“Basically the question was, does this mean we can’t rate Russia any more?”
It turned out the answer was yes.
DEFAULT DEADLINE ONE
With so many hurdles being erected, expectations built that Russia would default on its first post-sanctions’ bond payments either on March 16, or a month later at the end of a 30-day “grace period.”
However, a special “waiver” in the U.S. sanctions granted by the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control allowed payments to go through.
UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES
On April 8, a week before the EU ban on Russian ratings was due to come into force, S&P declared Russia in “selective default” after Moscow said it planned to make upcoming bond payments in roubles rather than dollars, their issue currency.
On May 3 though, shortly before the payment was due, the Kremlin U-turned and paid in dollars.
SHOCK TO THE SYSTEM
Days later, Russia had stumbled, though.
On May 11, sharp-eyed creditors spotted that Moscow had failed to add $1.9 million of extra interest that had built up on bonds that only got paid in their grace periods rather than on time.
They contacted the clearing house Euroclear and then bond market equivalent of an insurance payment arbiter - the Credit Derivative Determinations Committee here which ruled that a "credit event" had happened.
The sum was too small to trigger default clauses in all of Russia’s international bonds, but it did mean some investors expected to receive default insurance payments.
But when the U.S. Treasury clarified on its website that buying Russian bonds on the open, or ‘secondary’ market, was banned, that credit default swap (CDS) insurance process had to be halted as it was no longer clear what to do with the bonds involved.
“It is a bit like if your house burns down and the insurance company turns around and claims it was the wrong kind of fire,” said Joe Delvaux, emerging markets distressed debt portfolio manager at Europe’s largest fund manager Amundi.
“The reality is that these sanctions are a shock to the system.”
INTENDED CONSEQUENCES
The step that made Russia’s default unavoidable though was Washington’s May 24 decision to let the waiver that had allowed U.S. bondholders to receive Russia’s payments, expire.
A week later, the EU also sanctioned Russia’s domestic paying agent, its National Settlement Depository (NSD), which it had been using to make the payments.
Moscow has blamed the West for forcing an “artificial default”, with its finance minister Anton Siluanov calling the situation a “farce.”
However, veteran global policymakers involved in the process say the sanctions are unprecedented but fully justified.
“They were very significant actions that responded to the magnitude of the actions that Russia undertook,” Agustin Carstens, the head of the world’s central bank umbrella body, the Bank for International Settlements, said.
Additional reporting by John O’Donnell in Frankfurt, Francesco Guarascio in Brussels, Andrew MacAskill, Karin Strohecker and Vincent Flasseur in London and Gavin Jones in Milan; Editing by Tomasz Janowski
https://www.reuters.com/article/ukraine ... SL8N2YE3N4
Re: THE EUROPEANS
REUTERS
"France working on contingency plans as energy crisis looms"
By Dominique Vidalon and Leigh Thomas
June 27, 2022
Summary
* Energy bosses urge users to lower use
* France aims to cut power consumption by 10% over two years
* Gas rationing "not the base case for now" -finmin source
PARIS, June 27 (Reuters) - France is working on contingency plans for cuts to Russian gas flows as top bosses at energy companies urge individuals and businesses to reduce power use.
France is less reliant than some of its neighbours on gas imports from Russia, which account for about 17% of its gas consumption.
But concerns about supply from Russia come as France grapples with already limited electricity generation due to unexpected maintenance at its aging nuclear reactors, prompting concern over winter shortages.
European Union leaders last week agreed to boost preparations for further cuts in Russian gas, accusing Moscow of "weaponising" energy via a supply squeeze which Germany warned could partly shut its industry.
French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said on Monday the government was working on energy emergency plans but has not yet had to put them into action.
"We will determine which companies are of the most strategic importance, namely those for whom we can allow gas to be cut off and those for whom we cannot allow any cuts," Le Maire told RMC Radio, without providing further detail.
"We are working on different scenarios, but for now this (rationing) is not the base case," a finance ministry source said.
In April, gas transport network operator GRTgaz said it had put in place measures that can be invoked to limit gas supply to customers in the event of shortages, and called on suppliers to fill underground storage ahead of next winter.
So-called load shedding is the deliberate shutdown of consumption to help cover supply deficits, usually determined through contracts with industry in the event of excess demand.
French gas users whose consumption exceeds 5 gigawatt hours (GWh) per year would be the first group impacted by load-shedding, the company had said.
These notably include large industrial sites in the refining, chemical and glass sectors as well as commercial malls and stadiums.
Last week, France said it would aim to fill its gas storage facilities by early autumn from 59% full now and that it will install an offshore terminal to receive liquefied natural gas (LNG) at the northern port of Le Havre in September 2023.
It also called for a 10% reduction in energy consumption over two years.
Le Maire on Monday said he backed an unusual call by the heads of France's top energy companies for individuals and businesses to limit power consumption immediately.
"We need to work collectively to reduce our consumption in order to regain room to manoeuvre," the chief executives of Engie, EDF and TotalEnergies said in an open letter published by weekly newspaper Journal du Dimanche.
The letter signed by Engie's Catherine MacGregor, EDF's Jean-Bernard Levy and TotalEnergies' Patrick Pouyanne cited sharp declines in Russian gas supply as well as limited electricity generation because of maintenance issues.
"The surge in energy prices that results from these difficulties threatens our social and political cohesion and weighs too heavily on the purchasing power of families."
"This is why we are launching this joint appeal" they wrote.
France on Sunday extended its mechanism for regulating gas prices to the end of the year.
The regulated tariff regime was originally set to end at the end of June.
Reporting by Tassilo Hummel; editing by Gareth Jones and Jason Neely
https://www.reuters.com/business/energy ... 022-06-27/
"France working on contingency plans as energy crisis looms"
By Dominique Vidalon and Leigh Thomas
June 27, 2022
Summary
* Energy bosses urge users to lower use
* France aims to cut power consumption by 10% over two years
* Gas rationing "not the base case for now" -finmin source
PARIS, June 27 (Reuters) - France is working on contingency plans for cuts to Russian gas flows as top bosses at energy companies urge individuals and businesses to reduce power use.
France is less reliant than some of its neighbours on gas imports from Russia, which account for about 17% of its gas consumption.
But concerns about supply from Russia come as France grapples with already limited electricity generation due to unexpected maintenance at its aging nuclear reactors, prompting concern over winter shortages.
European Union leaders last week agreed to boost preparations for further cuts in Russian gas, accusing Moscow of "weaponising" energy via a supply squeeze which Germany warned could partly shut its industry.
French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said on Monday the government was working on energy emergency plans but has not yet had to put them into action.
"We will determine which companies are of the most strategic importance, namely those for whom we can allow gas to be cut off and those for whom we cannot allow any cuts," Le Maire told RMC Radio, without providing further detail.
"We are working on different scenarios, but for now this (rationing) is not the base case," a finance ministry source said.
In April, gas transport network operator GRTgaz said it had put in place measures that can be invoked to limit gas supply to customers in the event of shortages, and called on suppliers to fill underground storage ahead of next winter.
So-called load shedding is the deliberate shutdown of consumption to help cover supply deficits, usually determined through contracts with industry in the event of excess demand.
French gas users whose consumption exceeds 5 gigawatt hours (GWh) per year would be the first group impacted by load-shedding, the company had said.
These notably include large industrial sites in the refining, chemical and glass sectors as well as commercial malls and stadiums.
Last week, France said it would aim to fill its gas storage facilities by early autumn from 59% full now and that it will install an offshore terminal to receive liquefied natural gas (LNG) at the northern port of Le Havre in September 2023.
It also called for a 10% reduction in energy consumption over two years.
Le Maire on Monday said he backed an unusual call by the heads of France's top energy companies for individuals and businesses to limit power consumption immediately.
"We need to work collectively to reduce our consumption in order to regain room to manoeuvre," the chief executives of Engie, EDF and TotalEnergies said in an open letter published by weekly newspaper Journal du Dimanche.
The letter signed by Engie's Catherine MacGregor, EDF's Jean-Bernard Levy and TotalEnergies' Patrick Pouyanne cited sharp declines in Russian gas supply as well as limited electricity generation because of maintenance issues.
"The surge in energy prices that results from these difficulties threatens our social and political cohesion and weighs too heavily on the purchasing power of families."
"This is why we are launching this joint appeal" they wrote.
France on Sunday extended its mechanism for regulating gas prices to the end of the year.
The regulated tariff regime was originally set to end at the end of June.
Reporting by Tassilo Hummel; editing by Gareth Jones and Jason Neely
https://www.reuters.com/business/energy ... 022-06-27/
Re: THE EUROPEANS
REUTERS
"G7 to stand with Ukraine 'for as long as it takes'"
By Angelo Amante and John Irish
June 27, 2022
Summary
* G7 to work with other countries, private sector on oil price cap
* Emerging countries decline to criticise Russia over Ukraine
* Japan tries to cut zero-emission vehicles goal from G7 statement
SCHLOSS ELMAU, Germany, June 27 (Reuters) - The Group of Seven club of wealthy nations on Monday vowed to stand with Ukraine "for as long as it takes", promising to tighten the squeeze on Russia's finances with new sanctions that include a proposal to cap the price of Russian oil.
The announcement came after Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, addressing G7 leaders at their summit in the Bavarian Alps via a video link, asked for weapons and air defences to gain the upper hand in the war against Russia within months.
But efforts to rally the Global South to the Ukrainian cause were less successful, with five developing countries invited to partner with the rich country club signing up only to a mildly worded statement hailing democracy's "courageous defenders" without referring explicitly to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
The G7 leaders' own statement aimed to signal that its members were ready to back Ukraine for the long haul, at a time when soaring inflation and energy shortages - fuelled by Russia's invasion - have tested the West's sanctions resolve.
"We will continue to provide financial, humanitarian, military and diplomatic support and stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes," the statement said.
After missiles rained down on Kyiv on Sunday, U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan said the United States was readying a new weapons package for Ukraine that included long-range air defences and ammunition.
In reference to Zelenskiy's address, Sullivan told reporters: "At the top of his mind was the set of missile strikes that took place in Kyiv and other cities across Ukraine and his desire to get additional air defence capabilities that could shoot down Russian missiles out of the sky."
The G7 countries said they were ready to provide security commitments in a post-war settlement while stressing, after Ukraine had earlier voiced misgivings, that it was up to Kyiv to decide a future peace deal with Russia.
The G7 countries said they had also pledged or were ready to grant up to $29.5 billion for Ukraine.
TAKING AIM AT PUTIN'S REVENUES
The White House said on Monday that Russia had defaulted on its foreign sovereign bonds for the first time in a century - an assertion Moscow rejected.
G7 nations, which generate nearly half the world's economic output, want to crank up pressure on Russia without stoking already soaring inflation that is causing strains at home and savaging the Global South.
The expanded sanctions would also target Russia's revenue stream from gold exports, Moscow's military production and officials installed by Moscow in areas of Ukraine occupied by Russian forces.
Imposing the oil price cap aims to hit Russian President Vladimir Putin's war chest while actually lowering energy prices.
"The dual objectives of G7 leaders have been to take direct aim at Putin's revenues, particularly through energy, but also to minimize the spillovers and the impact on the G7 economies and the rest of the world," a U.S. official said on the sidelines of the G7 summit.
Western sanctions have hit Russia's economy hard and the new measures are aimed at further depriving the Kremlin of oil revenues.
G7 countries would work with others - including India - to limit the revenues that Putin can continue to generate, the U.S. official said.
India has refrained from criticising Russia and provided a market for Russian oil, gas and coal as it sought to balance longstanding ties with Moscow and relations with the West.
While hosting the Indonesian president at the G7 summit, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz did not rule out boycotting the Group of Twenty summit in Indonesia in November if Putin attended.
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi is one of the five leaders of guest nations joining the G7 for talks on climate change, energy, health, food security and gender equality on the second day of the summit.
"It is good, important and necessary that we talk to each other," Scholz said of the guest nations, which also included Argentina, Indonesia, Senegal and South Africa, hailing them as "democracies of the future."
MORE SANCTIONS
A U.S. official said news that Russia defaulted on its foreign sovereign bonds for the first time since the Bolshevik revolution in 1917 showed how effective Western sanctions had been.
The Kremlin, which has the funds to make payments thanks to rich energy revenues, swiftly rejected the U.S. statement, accusing the West of driving it into an artificial default.
The United States said it would also implement sanctions on hundreds of individuals and entities adding to the more than 1,000 already sanctioned, target companies in several countries, and impose tariffs on hundreds of Russia products.
The agencies involved would release details on Tuesday to minimize any flight risk, a second senior administration official said.
The Ukraine crisis has detracted attention from another crisis - that of climate change - originally set to dominate the summit.
Activists fear Western nations are watering down their climate ambitions as they scramble to find alternatives to Russian gas imports and rely more heavily on coal, a dirtier fossil fuel, instead.
Japan is also pushing to remove a target for zero-emission vehicles from a G7 communique expected this week, according to a proposed draft seen by Reuters.
Reporting by Andrea Shalal and Sarah Marsh, Angelo Amante, Phil Blenkinsop; Writing by Sarah Marsh and Matthias Williams; Editing by Thomas Escritt, Mark Heinrich and Alex Richardson
https://www.reuters.com/business/energy ... 022-06-27/
"G7 to stand with Ukraine 'for as long as it takes'"
By Angelo Amante and John Irish
June 27, 2022
Summary
* G7 to work with other countries, private sector on oil price cap
* Emerging countries decline to criticise Russia over Ukraine
* Japan tries to cut zero-emission vehicles goal from G7 statement
SCHLOSS ELMAU, Germany, June 27 (Reuters) - The Group of Seven club of wealthy nations on Monday vowed to stand with Ukraine "for as long as it takes", promising to tighten the squeeze on Russia's finances with new sanctions that include a proposal to cap the price of Russian oil.
The announcement came after Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, addressing G7 leaders at their summit in the Bavarian Alps via a video link, asked for weapons and air defences to gain the upper hand in the war against Russia within months.
But efforts to rally the Global South to the Ukrainian cause were less successful, with five developing countries invited to partner with the rich country club signing up only to a mildly worded statement hailing democracy's "courageous defenders" without referring explicitly to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
The G7 leaders' own statement aimed to signal that its members were ready to back Ukraine for the long haul, at a time when soaring inflation and energy shortages - fuelled by Russia's invasion - have tested the West's sanctions resolve.
"We will continue to provide financial, humanitarian, military and diplomatic support and stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes," the statement said.
After missiles rained down on Kyiv on Sunday, U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan said the United States was readying a new weapons package for Ukraine that included long-range air defences and ammunition.
In reference to Zelenskiy's address, Sullivan told reporters: "At the top of his mind was the set of missile strikes that took place in Kyiv and other cities across Ukraine and his desire to get additional air defence capabilities that could shoot down Russian missiles out of the sky."
The G7 countries said they were ready to provide security commitments in a post-war settlement while stressing, after Ukraine had earlier voiced misgivings, that it was up to Kyiv to decide a future peace deal with Russia.
The G7 countries said they had also pledged or were ready to grant up to $29.5 billion for Ukraine.
TAKING AIM AT PUTIN'S REVENUES
The White House said on Monday that Russia had defaulted on its foreign sovereign bonds for the first time in a century - an assertion Moscow rejected.
G7 nations, which generate nearly half the world's economic output, want to crank up pressure on Russia without stoking already soaring inflation that is causing strains at home and savaging the Global South.
The expanded sanctions would also target Russia's revenue stream from gold exports, Moscow's military production and officials installed by Moscow in areas of Ukraine occupied by Russian forces.
Imposing the oil price cap aims to hit Russian President Vladimir Putin's war chest while actually lowering energy prices.
"The dual objectives of G7 leaders have been to take direct aim at Putin's revenues, particularly through energy, but also to minimize the spillovers and the impact on the G7 economies and the rest of the world," a U.S. official said on the sidelines of the G7 summit.
Western sanctions have hit Russia's economy hard and the new measures are aimed at further depriving the Kremlin of oil revenues.
G7 countries would work with others - including India - to limit the revenues that Putin can continue to generate, the U.S. official said.
India has refrained from criticising Russia and provided a market for Russian oil, gas and coal as it sought to balance longstanding ties with Moscow and relations with the West.
While hosting the Indonesian president at the G7 summit, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz did not rule out boycotting the Group of Twenty summit in Indonesia in November if Putin attended.
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi is one of the five leaders of guest nations joining the G7 for talks on climate change, energy, health, food security and gender equality on the second day of the summit.
"It is good, important and necessary that we talk to each other," Scholz said of the guest nations, which also included Argentina, Indonesia, Senegal and South Africa, hailing them as "democracies of the future."
MORE SANCTIONS
A U.S. official said news that Russia defaulted on its foreign sovereign bonds for the first time since the Bolshevik revolution in 1917 showed how effective Western sanctions had been.
The Kremlin, which has the funds to make payments thanks to rich energy revenues, swiftly rejected the U.S. statement, accusing the West of driving it into an artificial default.
The United States said it would also implement sanctions on hundreds of individuals and entities adding to the more than 1,000 already sanctioned, target companies in several countries, and impose tariffs on hundreds of Russia products.
The agencies involved would release details on Tuesday to minimize any flight risk, a second senior administration official said.
The Ukraine crisis has detracted attention from another crisis - that of climate change - originally set to dominate the summit.
Activists fear Western nations are watering down their climate ambitions as they scramble to find alternatives to Russian gas imports and rely more heavily on coal, a dirtier fossil fuel, instead.
Japan is also pushing to remove a target for zero-emission vehicles from a G7 communique expected this week, according to a proposed draft seen by Reuters.
Reporting by Andrea Shalal and Sarah Marsh, Angelo Amante, Phil Blenkinsop; Writing by Sarah Marsh and Matthias Williams; Editing by Thomas Escritt, Mark Heinrich and Alex Richardson
https://www.reuters.com/business/energy ... 022-06-27/
Re: THE EUROPEANS
REUTERS
"Macron tells Biden that UAE, Saudi can barely raise oil output"
Reuters
June 27, 2022
GARMISCH-PARTENKIRCHEN, Germany, June 27 (Reuters) - Two top OPEC oil producers, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, can barely increase oil production, French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday said he had been told by the UAE's president.
Saudi Arabia and the UAE have been perceived as the only two countries in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) with spare capacity to boost global deliveries that could reduce prices.
"I had a call with MbZ," Macron was heard telling U.S. President Joe Biden on the sidelines of the G7 summit, using shorthand for UAE leader Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan.
"He told me two things."
"I'm at a maximum, maximum (production capacity)."
"This is what he claims."
"And then he said (the) Saudis can increase by 150 (thousands barrels per day)."
"Maybe a little bit more, but they don't have huge capacities before six months' time," Macron said.
The UAE's top energy official confirmed Macron's statement to the country's state news agency.
"In light of recent media reports, I would like to clarify that the UAE is producing near to our maximum production capacity based on its current OPEC+ production baseline," said Energy Minister Suhail bin Mohammed Al Mazrouei.
World oil prices have been steadily rising in recent months due to a shortage of supply and rebound in demand from the worst of the coronavirus epidemic.
Prices have risen further since Moscow invaded Ukraine in late February.
On Monday, benchmark crude rose after Reuters reported Macron's comments.
Brent oil prices rose 1.7% to above $115 per barrel as the West seeks ways to reduce Russian oil imports to punish Moscow.
Saudi Arabia is producing 10.5 million bpd and has a nameplate capacity of 12.0 million-12.5 million bpd, which in theory shall allow it to raise production by 2 million.
The UAE is producing some 3 million bpd, has capacity of 3.4 million and has been working on raising it to 4 million bpd.
Europe is looking for ways to replace as much as 2 million bpd of Russian crude and some 2 million bpd of refined products it had been importing from Moscow before the Ukraine war.
Reporting by Reuters TV; Writing by Dmitry Zhdannikov; Editing by Jan Harvey and Grant McCool
https://www.reuters.com/world/macron-te ... 022-06-27/
"Macron tells Biden that UAE, Saudi can barely raise oil output"
Reuters
June 27, 2022
GARMISCH-PARTENKIRCHEN, Germany, June 27 (Reuters) - Two top OPEC oil producers, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, can barely increase oil production, French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday said he had been told by the UAE's president.
Saudi Arabia and the UAE have been perceived as the only two countries in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) with spare capacity to boost global deliveries that could reduce prices.
"I had a call with MbZ," Macron was heard telling U.S. President Joe Biden on the sidelines of the G7 summit, using shorthand for UAE leader Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan.
"He told me two things."
"I'm at a maximum, maximum (production capacity)."
"This is what he claims."
"And then he said (the) Saudis can increase by 150 (thousands barrels per day)."
"Maybe a little bit more, but they don't have huge capacities before six months' time," Macron said.
The UAE's top energy official confirmed Macron's statement to the country's state news agency.
"In light of recent media reports, I would like to clarify that the UAE is producing near to our maximum production capacity based on its current OPEC+ production baseline," said Energy Minister Suhail bin Mohammed Al Mazrouei.
World oil prices have been steadily rising in recent months due to a shortage of supply and rebound in demand from the worst of the coronavirus epidemic.
Prices have risen further since Moscow invaded Ukraine in late February.
On Monday, benchmark crude rose after Reuters reported Macron's comments.
Brent oil prices rose 1.7% to above $115 per barrel as the West seeks ways to reduce Russian oil imports to punish Moscow.
Saudi Arabia is producing 10.5 million bpd and has a nameplate capacity of 12.0 million-12.5 million bpd, which in theory shall allow it to raise production by 2 million.
The UAE is producing some 3 million bpd, has capacity of 3.4 million and has been working on raising it to 4 million bpd.
Europe is looking for ways to replace as much as 2 million bpd of Russian crude and some 2 million bpd of refined products it had been importing from Moscow before the Ukraine war.
Reporting by Reuters TV; Writing by Dmitry Zhdannikov; Editing by Jan Harvey and Grant McCool
https://www.reuters.com/world/macron-te ... 022-06-27/
Re: THE EUROPEANS
REUTERS
"U.S. to boost military presence in Europe as NATO bolsters its eastern flank"
By Aislinn Laing, Andrea Shalal and Robin Emmott
June 29, 2022
Summary
* Finland, Sweden to join NATO after ratification
* Biden promises more troops, weapons to Europe
* NATO agreed new force structure to deter Russia
* Madrid protesters call for more arms to Ukraine
MADRID, June 29 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden pledged more American troops, warplanes and warships for Europe on Wednesday as NATO agreed the biggest strengthening of its deterrents since the Cold War in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Biden's commitment at the Madrid summit "to defend every inch of allied territory" came as the U.S.-led military alliance also set in motion a new plan to reinforce the Baltic states and Poland against any future Russian attack.
With more German, British and other allied troops to be on alert to deploy eastward, the United States is also adding to the 100,000 personnel already in Europe by sending more warships to Spain, planes to Britain, pre-positioned weapons to the Baltics and more soldiers to Romania.
"We mean it when we say an attack against one is an attack against all," Biden said.
However, Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi played down a threat of a near-term armed confrontation between NATO and Russia.
"There is no risk of a military escalation."
"We must be ready, but there is no risk," he said.
The Baltics originally sought permanent NATO bases and as much as a tenfold increase to NATO's troop presence from around 5,000 multinational soldiers prior to the Ukraine invasion, as well as adding air and maritime defences.
What NATO agreed on Wednesday falls short of that, but it means more allied troops in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, more equipment, weapons and ammunition sent to the region, and setting up a system of rapid reinforcements.
NATO leaders agreed to move towards putting more than 300,000 troops at higher readiness.
In the past, the alliance relied on far fewer troops - some 40,000 - to be first in line to respond to any Russian attack or other crises.
"President (Vladimir) Putin's war against Ukraine has shattered peace in Europe and has created the biggest security crisis in Europe since the Second World War," NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told a news conference.
"NATO has responded with strength and unity."
The United States will also create a new permanent army headquarters in Poland, which was immediately welcomed by Polish president Andrzej Duda, as Warsaw long sought a permanent U.S. military base on its soil.
"It is a fact that strengthens our safety a lot ... in the difficult situation which we are in," Duda said.
As NATO also agreed a long-term military and financial aid package for Ukraine, Ukrainian refugees gathered in central Madrid to call for more arms for their nation, which is now facing a war of attrition against superior Russian artillery in the east of the country.
Ukrainian student Kateryna Darchyk, 20, told Reuters: "We ask for NATO to give us weapons because we have soldiers, we have people ready to fight for Ukraine, men and women who are ready to protect their country."
END OF NORDIC NEUTRALITY
In addition, NATO's 30 leaders invited Finland and Sweden into the alliance, a decision that once ratified would end decades of Nordic neutrality by putting the two countries under the United States' nuclear umbrella.
"The significance of this really can't be overstated," Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson told reporters.
"We're seeing the expansion of the alliance, which is exactly the opposite of what Putin wanted."
"He wanted less NATO, he's getting more."
That was made possible after Turkey dropped its veto against the two countries' progress to membership following four hours of talks on Tuesday evening in Madrid, ending weeks of drama that threatened allied unity.
As part of the deal, Sweden and Finland agreed not to support Kurdish militant groups.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan had threatened to block their bids over Ankara's accusations the two countries supported a Kurdish militia in northern Syria.
Turkey views the militia as an extension of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) which is also deemed a terrorist group by the United States and the European Union.
Both Finland, which has a 1,300 km (810 mile) border with Russia, and Sweden, home of the founder of the Nobel Peace Prize, are now set to bring well-trained militaries into the alliance, possibly giving NATO Baltic Sea superiority.
"We are not yet covered by NATO's Article 5," Finland's Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto told Reuters, referring to NATO's collective defence clause.
"Our aim is that period should be as short as possible," he said.
Additional reporting by Sabine Siebold, Belen Carreno, Humeyra Pamuk and Guillermo Martinez and Kylie MacLellan in London and Giulia Segreti in Rome, writing by Robin Emmott; Editing by Tomasz Janowski
https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/us ... 022-06-29/
"U.S. to boost military presence in Europe as NATO bolsters its eastern flank"
By Aislinn Laing, Andrea Shalal and Robin Emmott
June 29, 2022
Summary
* Finland, Sweden to join NATO after ratification
* Biden promises more troops, weapons to Europe
* NATO agreed new force structure to deter Russia
* Madrid protesters call for more arms to Ukraine
MADRID, June 29 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden pledged more American troops, warplanes and warships for Europe on Wednesday as NATO agreed the biggest strengthening of its deterrents since the Cold War in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Biden's commitment at the Madrid summit "to defend every inch of allied territory" came as the U.S.-led military alliance also set in motion a new plan to reinforce the Baltic states and Poland against any future Russian attack.
With more German, British and other allied troops to be on alert to deploy eastward, the United States is also adding to the 100,000 personnel already in Europe by sending more warships to Spain, planes to Britain, pre-positioned weapons to the Baltics and more soldiers to Romania.
"We mean it when we say an attack against one is an attack against all," Biden said.
However, Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi played down a threat of a near-term armed confrontation between NATO and Russia.
"There is no risk of a military escalation."
"We must be ready, but there is no risk," he said.
The Baltics originally sought permanent NATO bases and as much as a tenfold increase to NATO's troop presence from around 5,000 multinational soldiers prior to the Ukraine invasion, as well as adding air and maritime defences.
What NATO agreed on Wednesday falls short of that, but it means more allied troops in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, more equipment, weapons and ammunition sent to the region, and setting up a system of rapid reinforcements.
NATO leaders agreed to move towards putting more than 300,000 troops at higher readiness.
In the past, the alliance relied on far fewer troops - some 40,000 - to be first in line to respond to any Russian attack or other crises.
"President (Vladimir) Putin's war against Ukraine has shattered peace in Europe and has created the biggest security crisis in Europe since the Second World War," NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told a news conference.
"NATO has responded with strength and unity."
The United States will also create a new permanent army headquarters in Poland, which was immediately welcomed by Polish president Andrzej Duda, as Warsaw long sought a permanent U.S. military base on its soil.
"It is a fact that strengthens our safety a lot ... in the difficult situation which we are in," Duda said.
As NATO also agreed a long-term military and financial aid package for Ukraine, Ukrainian refugees gathered in central Madrid to call for more arms for their nation, which is now facing a war of attrition against superior Russian artillery in the east of the country.
Ukrainian student Kateryna Darchyk, 20, told Reuters: "We ask for NATO to give us weapons because we have soldiers, we have people ready to fight for Ukraine, men and women who are ready to protect their country."
END OF NORDIC NEUTRALITY
In addition, NATO's 30 leaders invited Finland and Sweden into the alliance, a decision that once ratified would end decades of Nordic neutrality by putting the two countries under the United States' nuclear umbrella.
"The significance of this really can't be overstated," Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson told reporters.
"We're seeing the expansion of the alliance, which is exactly the opposite of what Putin wanted."
"He wanted less NATO, he's getting more."
That was made possible after Turkey dropped its veto against the two countries' progress to membership following four hours of talks on Tuesday evening in Madrid, ending weeks of drama that threatened allied unity.
As part of the deal, Sweden and Finland agreed not to support Kurdish militant groups.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan had threatened to block their bids over Ankara's accusations the two countries supported a Kurdish militia in northern Syria.
Turkey views the militia as an extension of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) which is also deemed a terrorist group by the United States and the European Union.
Both Finland, which has a 1,300 km (810 mile) border with Russia, and Sweden, home of the founder of the Nobel Peace Prize, are now set to bring well-trained militaries into the alliance, possibly giving NATO Baltic Sea superiority.
"We are not yet covered by NATO's Article 5," Finland's Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto told Reuters, referring to NATO's collective defence clause.
"Our aim is that period should be as short as possible," he said.
Additional reporting by Sabine Siebold, Belen Carreno, Humeyra Pamuk and Guillermo Martinez and Kylie MacLellan in London and Giulia Segreti in Rome, writing by Robin Emmott; Editing by Tomasz Janowski
https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/us ... 022-06-29/