A collection of 63 posts
The outcome of Austria’s election is undeniably historic—not just for Austria, but for the whole European Union. The Freedom Party of Austria (FPO) is not the first far-right party to gain power in the EU in the 21st-Century, nor will it be the last, but it is unique
Austria’s far-right Freedom Party (FPO) has won a landmark victory, claiming the largest share of votes and ending 20 years of dominance by the centre-right People’s Party (OVP). Led by Herbert Kickl, the FPO secured 28.8% (which translated to 56 seats, up 25), pipping Austrian Chancellor Karl
Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu has requested that his country’s upcoming European Commissioner focuses on economic policies, following a meeting with European Commission (EC) President Ursula von der Leyen in Brussels on Thursday. “I want a portfolio that is highly relevant, given that we are the sixth largest country
Romania reported the highest inflation rate in May, of 5.8%, driven by significant increases in housing and utilities prices, according to the latest data from the EU’s official statistics agency Eurostat. Croatia experienced the second highest inflation in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), of 4.3%, driven primarily
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Austria’s Freedom Party FPO leader Herbert Kickl and ANO party leader and former Czech prime minister Andrej Babis declared a “new era” as they announced a European Parliament political alliance named Patriots for Europe at a joint press conference in Vienna on Sunday, 30
The EU elections, which will be held from on 6-9 June, involve nearly 400mn voters across 27 countries deciding on 720 seats in the European Parliament (EP). The vote will decide who will lead the European Commission (EC), with EC President Ursula von der Leyen vying for a second term,
Lithuania had the lowest annual inflation rate of 0.4% in the EU in March 2024, EU official statistics office Eurostat reports. The EU’s highest inflation rates were also recorded in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) countries, with the steepest price increases in Romania (6.7%), Croatia (4.9%
Shipping label management and payment system Ikas has announced that it will initiate operations in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), as well as Germany and Switzerland. Ikas CEO Mustafa Namoglu said US tech giants largely overlook CEE and his company will offer SMEs a reliable, user-friendly interface as well as
Czech photovoltaic distributor Raylyst Solar is the most rapidly growing company in Europe, according to the latest rankings by UK daily the Financial Times and German data platform Statista. Czech entrepreneur Jan Kamenicek founded Raylyst in 2018, and the company now delivers photovoltaic panels in Czechia, Germany, Slovakia, Italy and
The expansion plan of the new ammunition plant of Rheinmetall in Varpalota, west Hungary, has been underway since January, the German automotive and arms manufacturer has revealed. The extension will increase the size of the plant by 20 hectares to some 120 hectares and payroll to around 200 employees. The
The number of battery-only electric passenger cars in the EU neared 3mn in 2022, up 55% from 1.9mn in 2021, according to the EU’s official statistics office Eurostat. In Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), Austria has the highest ratio of cars under two years of age, with 13%
The share of renewable sources in gross final energy consumption at the EU level reached 23% in 2022, up 1.1 percentage points (pp) year-on-year, the bloc’s statistics office Eurostat reports. The EU’s revised Renewable Energy Directive has upped the bloc’s 2030 renewable energy target from 32%
In recent months, Austria’s stance on Romania and Bulgaria’s Schengen Area accession has been shifting, particularly in terms of air travel. Now Austria has proposed a conditional easing of its stance via “Air Schengen,” an initiative that would allow passport-free air travel for these two countries while maintaining
Bulgaria placed bottom in the EU for recycling disused ICT devices, in a survey conducted in 2022 by EU official statistics office Eurostat. Only 3.4% recycle their old desktop computers in Bulgaria. Sweden (29%) recycles the most old desktop computers, ahead of the Netherlands (27%). Austria was the highest
Hungary remained the EU’s most inflationary economy with an annual rate of 9.6% in October, an EU statistics office Eurostat report released Friday 17, November revealed. On the upside, this was the first time Hungary’s inflation rate had fallen to single digits since April 2022. The EU’