Europe Daily News, 29 October 2024

COMPETITION

• Austria - Cartel court imposes fine of €9.2m on Österreichische Post Aktiengesellschaft for abuse of market power
• Austria - Director General of the Federal Competition Authority Natalie Harsdorf elected Chair of the OECD Working Party on Competition and Regulation
• Austria - Prohibited implementation of a concentration: Cartel Court increases the fine against Palmers Textil Aktiengesellschaft twenty-fold from €5,000 to €100,000 following an appeal by BWB
  
• Prior notification of a concentration (Case M.11732 - Carlyle / Vantive)
• Prior notification of a concentration (Case M.11672 - Adrill / ADH / EV)
• Prior notification of a concentration (Case M.11713 - Inter Ikea System / Ikea Baltics)
• Prior notification of a concentration (Case M.11418 - ADQ / EGPC / Ethydco / EDC / ELAB)
• Prior notification of a concentration (Case M.11676 - CD&R / Permira / Exclusive Networks)
• Non-opposition to a notified concentration (Case M.11745 - DIE Schweizerische Post / Fenaco / Polwerup JV)
• EU and UK conclude technical negotiations for a future competition cooperation agreement - See CMA Statement
• Commission clears creation of joint venture by KKR and Baupost (M.11763) - Midday Express
• Commission clears acquisition of Idealista by Cinven (M.11654) - Midday Express
  
• Thales and Airbus space deal would create European monopoly, warns rival - Aerospace groups are in talks over tie-up offering satellite manufacturing and space systems - Financial Times

STATE AID

• Authorisation for State aid pursuant to Articles 107 and 108 of the TFEU - Cases where the Commission raises no objections – SA.112460; SA.115901; SA.114268; SA.113780 & SA.115271

TRADE & CUSTOMS

• Agenda for: Working Party on Customs Union - 07 November 2024
• Agenda for: Trade Policy Committee (Services & Investment) - 30 October 2024
• Agenda for: 34th meeting of the Commission Expert Group on Prohibitions & Restrictions - 13 & 14 November 2024
• Agenda for: Meeting of the Customs Business Group on CCI (Centralised Clearance for Import) - 22 November 2024
• Minutes of the 29th meeting of the UCC Customs Decisions (CD) Member States' Collaboration Group - 08 October 2024
• Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) …/... imposing a definitive countervailing duty on imports of new battery electric vehicles designed for the transport of persons originating in the People’s Republic of China
• WTO - Items proposed for consideration at the next meeting of Dispute Settlement Body - 28 October 2024

INTERNAL MARKET & INDUSTRY

• European Innovation Council to invest €1.4 billion in deep tech and scale up of strategic technologies in 2025
• Steel market outlook continues to worsen as demand and consumption decline amid high import shares - Eurofer Statement & Report

AUTOMOTIVE

• New commercial vehicle registrations: vans +8.5%, trucks -7.5%, buses +16% in the first three quarters of 2024 - See Acea Statement
• Why Europe’s car crisis is mostly made in China - The once-lucrative market is now highly competitive and more Chinese EVs are being exported, compounding slower sales at home - Financial Times

CHEMICAL

• Commission Regulation (EU) …/… of XXX amending Annex XVII to Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in clay targets

FINANCE

• ESMA consults on amendments to MiFID research regime
• ESMA makes proposals to streamline the prospectus area and seeks stakeholder input
• The EBA consults on draft technical standards for structural foreign exchange positions

TAXATION

• European Commission adapts administrative cooperation rules to new directive on minimum tax on businesses - See the Proposal
• Report from the Commission to the Council - Implementation report on the review of the DRM Directive

AGRICULTURE & FISHERIES

• Agenda for: Meeting of the EU Fertilisers Market Observatory - 07 November 2024
• Minutes of: Meeting of the Organic Production Committee - 14 October 2024
• Minutes of the Committee for the Common Organisation of the Agricultural Markets - 30 September 2024

ENERGY

• Commission Decision (EU) 2024/2779 of 24 October 2024 setting up the group of experts on ecodesign for sustainable products and energy labelling (the Ecodesign Forum)
• Commission welcomes increased electricity export capacity to Ukraine and Moldova - Midday Express
• ACER to decide on hedging opportunities between the Netherlands and Norway
• ACER scrutinises the bi-directional gas flow decision at the EUGAL interconnection between Czech Republic and Germany
• Transatlantic Clean Investment Monitor: a solar PV snapshot - This analysis compares the state of play in solar capacity in both the US and Europe - See Bruegel Study

ENVIRONMENT & CLIMATE CHANGE

• Agenda for: Working Party on International Environment Issues (UNECE CLRTAP) - 04 November 2024

• 16th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD COP 16) (Cali, Columbia, 21 October – 1 November 2024): “World Coalition for Peace with Nature: A Call for Life” and Declaration of the “World Coalition for Peace with Nature” - Request by the Commission for authorisation to sign a Non-Binding Instrument (NBI

• Answer given by Executive Vice-President Šefčovič to a MEP written question - Infringement procedures (UWWTD)

HEALTH, FOOD & PRODUCT SAFETY

• Public consultation - Health technology assessment – joint scientific consultations on medical devices & in vitro diagnostic medical devices - Implementing regulation - Feedback period: 29 October 2024 - 26 November 2024
• Answer given by Ms Kyriakides to a MEP written question - Authorisation of Mpox vaccines and transparency
• ECDC - Surveillance and targeted testing for the early detection of zoonotic influenza in humans during the winter period in the EU/EEA
• ECDC - Increased flu and COVID-19 vaccination coverage recommended for risk groups in EU/EEA ahead of winter season - See the Statement
• EMA - Fostering regulatory collaboration to improve access to mpox medicines - Global regulators discuss available knowledge supporting mpox medicine development and approval

DIGITAL & INFORMATION SOCIETY

• Commission launches public consultation on rules governing researchers' access to data on online platforms under digital services legislation - Feedback period: 29 October 2024 - 26 November 2024
• Answer given by Executive Vice-President Vestager to a MEP written question - Ensuring reliable and fast connections in rural areas and regions bordering Russia

AREA OF FREEDOM, SECURITY & JUSTICE

• Council Decision (EU) 2024/2780 of 29 January 2024 on the position to be taken on behalf of the European Union at the third session of the Meeting of the Parties to the Protocol to Eliminate Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products
• Malware targeting millions of people taken down by international coalition - Eurojust

ECB, EURO & ECONOMY

• More than €93 million from the Cohesion Fund to turn Faliron Bay in Athens into a green and vibrant space - Midday Express
• ECB - Euro area economic and financial developments by institutional sector: second quarter of 2024
• The Survey on the Access to Finance of Enterprises: monetary policy, economic and financing conditions and inflation expectations - ECB Economic Bulletin Issue 7, 2024 
• The ECB’s accountability to the European Parliament 2019-2024: commitment in times of change - ECB Economic Bulletin Issue 7, 2024
• What consumers think is the main driver of recent inflation: changes in perceptions over time - ECB Economic Bulletin Issue 7, 2024
• Asymmetric monetary policy spillovers: the role of supply chains, credit networks and fear of floating - ECB Working Paper Series No.2995
• Geopolitics and trade in the euro area and the United States: de-risking of import supplies? - ECB Occasional paper Series No.359

FUTURE OF EUROPE

• Keynote speech by President von der Leyen at the opening ceremony of the new academic year 2024-2025, Jacques Delors promotion, at the College of Europe

EXTERNAL RELATIONS

• Uzbekistan: Statement by the Spokesperson on the parliamentary elections
• Israel/Palestine: Statement by the High Representative on voting in the Israeli parliament regarding UNRWA operations
• Union for the Mediterranean: Opening remarks by High Representative/Vice-President Josep Borrell at the 9th Regional Forum
• Union for the Mediterranean: Press remarks by High Representative/Vice-President Josep Borrell following the 9th Regional Forum
• Joint press statement EU - Western Balkans Ministerial Forum on Justice and Home Affairs (Budva, Montenegro, 28-29 October 2024)
• Read out of the phone call between President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen and President of the Republic of Korea Yoon Suk Yeol