Europe Daily News, 24 October 2024

COMPETITION

• The Court of Justice upholds the annulment by the General Court of the Commission’s decision finding an abuse of a dominant position on the part of Intel and imposing a fine of €1.06 billion on Intel (See CPR Nº 185/2024 - Judgment of the Court of Justice in Case C-240/22 P, Commission Vs. Intel Corporation)
• Non-opposition to a notified concentration (Case M.11587 - Masdar / EDFR / Nesma / JV)
• Commission clears acquisition of MV Credit by Clearlake (M.11726) - Midday Express
• Austria - Carpentry cartel investigation concluded: Cartel Court upholds the appeal of the Federal Competition Authority and imposes a fine of EUR 65,000 on Tischlerei Pirkl
• UK - The CMA announced the launch of its merger inquiry by notice to the parties in the anticipated acquisition of Stork UK by Altrad
• UK - The CMA announced the launch of its merger inquiry by notice to the parties in the anticipated acquisition of the Eviosys group by Sonoco Products Company 
• UK - The CMA has cleared Microsoft’s hiring of certain former employees of Inflection and its entry into associated arrangements with Inflection - see the Full Text Decision
• UK - The CMA announces a new growth-focused work programme from its Microeconomics Unit alongside publication of its third State of Competition report
• UK competition regulator to probe investment barriers - CMA also warns that price ‘mark-ups’ have risen over past 25 years - 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.115881, SA.115943 & SA.115852
• Commission Decision (EU) 2024/2710 of 18 March 2022 on the State Aid SA.53903 (2020/C ex 2019/NN) implemented by Poland for LG Chem
• EFTA Surveillance Authority - No state aid within the meaning of Article 61(1) of the EEA Agreement
• EFTA Surveillance Authority - State aid – Decision to raise no objections: Decision No.112/24/COL, Decision No.084/24/COL & Decision No.111/24/COL
• Commission approves €400 million Romanian State aid scheme to compensate farmers affected by severe drought (SA.11605) - Midday Express

TRADE & CUSTOMS

• Agenda for: Trade Policy Committee (Deputies) / Attachés & experts - 24 October 2024
  
• Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) …/... correcting certain language versions of Annex I to Council Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87 on the tariff and statistical nomenclature and on the Common Customs Tariff
• Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) …/... making imports of optical fibre cables originating in India subject to registration
• Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) …/... making imports of lysine originating in the People’s Republic of China subject to registration
• Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) …/... making imports of vanillin originating in the People’s Republic of China subject to registration
• Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) …/... making imports of glyoxylic acid originating in the People’s Republic of China subject to registration
• Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) …/... making imports of mobile access equipment originating in the People’s Republic of China subject to registration
• Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) …/... making imports of multilayered wood flooring originating in the People’s Republic of China subject to registration
• Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) …/... making imports of epoxy resins originating in the People’s Republic of China, the Republic of Korea, Taiwan and Thailand subject to registration
• Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) …/... making imports of flat-rolled products of iron or non-alloy steel plated or coated with tin originating in the People’s Republic of China subject to registration
• Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) …/... making imports of certain hot-rolled flat products of iron, non-alloy or other alloy steel, originating in Egypt, India, Japan and Vietnam subject to registration
• Notice of the impending expiry of certain anti-dumping measures (Solar glass - The People’s Republic of China - Anti-dumping duty - Regulation (EU) 2020/1080 - 24.07.2025)
• Notice of the impending expiry of certain anti-subsidy measures (Solar glass - The People’s Republic of China - Countervailing duty - Regulation (EU) 2020/1081 - 24.07.2025)
• Speech by Executive Vice-President Dombrovskis at the University of Brasília
  WTO - Joint report explores scope for coordinated approaches on climate action, carbon pricing, and policy spillovers
• WTO - The 4th review of the "Trade policies & Practices" of the Maldives takes place on 23 and 25 October 2024
• DDG Ellard highlights importance of WTO collaboration with World Customs Organization

EU/UK RELATIONS

• Agenda for: Working Party on the United Kingdom - 25 October 2024
• Joint statement following the meeting of the Specialised Committee on the implementation of the Windsor Framework on 22 October 2024 
• Decision No 1/2024 of the Trade Specialised Committee on Administrative cooperation in VAT and Recovery of Taxes and Duties of 30 September 2024 amending Decision 4/2023 on standard forms for the communication of information and statistical data, the transmission of information via the Common Communication Network and the practical arrangements for the organisation of contacts between central liaison offices and liaison departments

INTERNAL MARKET & INDUSTRY

• Judgment of the Court of 24 October 2024 in Case C-476/23, STAR POST Vs. Komisia za regulirane na saobshteniata
  Re: Reference for a preliminary ruling - Postal services in the European Union - Directive 97/67/EC - Article 22(3) - Concept of ‘postal service provider affected by a decision of a national regulatory authority’ - Right of appeal

CHEMICAL

• Agenda for: 65th meeting of the Committee for Socio-economic Analysis - 26 to 28 November 2024
• ECHA’s Integrated Regulatory Strategy achieves its goal – high production volume chemicals screened - ECHA/NR/24/27
• ECHA Weekly Newsletter - 23 October 2024

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

• Member States are required to protect works of art in the European Union, irrespective of the country of origin of those works or the nationality of their author (See CPR Nº 184/2024 - Judgment of the Court of Justice in Case C-227/23, Kwantum Nederland and Kwantum België)

ENVIRONMENT & CLIMATE CHANGE

• Agenda for: Working Party on International Environment Issues (UNECE Espoo) - 07 November 2024
• Proposal for a Council Decision on the position to be taken on behalf of the Union in the Joint Monitoring and Review Committee under the Voluntary Partnership Agreement between the European Union and the Cooperative Republic of Guyana on forest law enforcement, governance and trade in timber products to the European Union, regarding the establishment of the rules of procedure of the Joint Monitoring and Review Committee and the working procedures for arbitration
• Draft Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council concerning urban wastewater treatment (recast) (first reading) - Adoption of the legislative act

HEALTH, FOOD & PRODUCT SAFETY

• SCHEER - Request for a scientific Opinion on an environmental quality standard for PFAS Total in surface and groundwater under the Water Framework Directive
• EFSA - Safety and efficacy of a feed additive consisting of a Camellia oleifera C.Abel seed extract for use in all animal species except fin fish (NOR‐FEED SAS)
• ECDC - Confirmed mpox clade Ib case in Germany, risk remains low for EU/EEA

AREA OF FREEDOM, SECURITY & JUSTICE

• EU unblocks funds for Slovakia after U-turn on fraud sentences - Reassurances by Bratislava on legal reform accepted after €800mn had been delayed over Brussels’ corruption concerns - Financial Times

ECB, EURO & ECONOMY

• Cohesion policy: Council agrees negotiating mandate for a regulation on facilitating cross-border solutions
• Immobilised assets: Council greenlights up to €35 billion in macro-financial assistance to Ukraine and new loan mechanism implementing G7 commitment
• Implications of higher inflation and interest rates for macroprudential policy stance - ECB Occasional Paper Series - No.358
• Using structural models to understand macroeconomic tail risks - ECB Occasional Paper Series - No.357
• Heterogeneous effects of monetary tightening in response to energy price shocks - ECB Research Bulletin - No.123
• A statistical approach to identifying ECB monetary policy - ECB Working Paper Series - No.2994
• Government-guaranteed credit and populism - ECB Working Paper Series - No.2993

FUTURE OF EUROPE

• Speech by President von der Leyen at the inauguration ceremony for the College of Europe campus in Tirana
• Statement by President von der Leyen at the joint press conference with Albanian Prime Minister Rama

EXTERNAL RELATIONS

• Corrigendum to Council Regulation (EU) 2024/1745 of 24 June 2024 amending Regulation (EU) No 833/2014 concerning restrictive measures in view of Russia’s actions destabilising the situation in Ukraine (OJ L, 2024/1745, 24.6.2024)
• Statement by the High Representative on behalf of the EU on the alignment of certain third countries concerning restrictive measures
  - in view of the situation in Nicaragua
  - directed against certain persons and entities in view of the situation in Tunisia
  - against ISIL (Da’esh) and Al-Qaeda and persons, groups, undertakings and entities associated with them
  - in respect of actions undermining or threatening the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine
• United Nations Day: Statement by High Representative/Vice-President Josep Borrell
• Lebanon: Statement by the High Representative Josep Borrell on EU's support to the country
• Palestine/Israel: Statement by the High Representative on the grave situation in Northern Gaza
• MEPs set to adopt a resolution denouncing tensions in Taiwan Strait and “distortion” of UN Resolution 2758
• Why the EU needs to close the gaps in its leaky sanctions regime - Financial Times