Search

Companies can play a key role in building a sustainable economy and society. At the same time, their global value chains can pose risks to human rights and the environment. A growing number of EU companies have taken initiatives to deploy due diligence processes, often using existing voluntary international standards on responsible business conduct. Some Member States have meanwhile started developing their own legal frameworks on corporate due diligence. To avoid fragmentation, and give businesses ...

This infographic provides an insight into the economic performance of Mexico compared to the EU, and looks at the trade dynamics between them. Mexico’s GDP per capita, unemployment rate, female labour force participation, and FDI have remained relatively stable since 2006, with slight increases, whereas remittances have increased more markedly. EU trade with Mexico has increased significantly since 2006, most notably trade in goods. This is dominated by trade in mechanical appliances and electrical ...

The field of direct taxation is not directly governed by European Union rules. Nevertheless, a number of directives and the case law of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) establish harmonised standards for taxation of companies and private individuals. Moreover, actions have been taken to prevent tax evasion and double taxation.

In order to promote its overall harmonious development, the European Union is strengthening its economic, social and territorial cohesion. In particular, the EU aims to reduce disparities between the levels of development of its various regions. Among the regions concerned, special attention is paid to rural areas, areas affected by industrial transition, and regions which suffer from severe and permanent natural or demographic handicaps, such as the northernmost regions with very low population ...

We argue that a hard stagflation scenario is still possible. This would have the potential to create a conflict between price stability and financial stability. We therefore address four questions. Why should central banks be concerned with financial stability? What financial imbalances should central banks be worried about? Are monetary policy and macroprudential regulation two tools for two goals? Is the ECB poised to face the price stability vs. financial stability trade-off?

The rise of policy rates in the euro area has led to a tightening of financing conditions raising concerns for financial stability. The risk of financial crisis should be neither ignored nor overstated. The euro area is not facing conditions for which there would be the highest probability of a crisis. The risk faced by banks depends on the share of adjustable-rate mortgages. At this stage, net interest margin of banks and profitability have slightly improved.

In February 2022, the European Commission proposed a draft directive on corporate sustainability due diligence, to introduce mandatory due diligence on human rights and environmental criteria, and directors' duty of care. Parliament has long advocated binding EU legislation on this issue, not least in a 2021 resolution. In March 2023, the Committee on Legal Affairs adopted its report on the proposal, calling for a number of changes. The report will be debated during the May II 2023 plenary session ...

As it brings inflation down, the ECB faces lingering real-side disturbances inherited from the pandemic and the invasion of Ukraine. Its actions sometimes even deepen these disturbances. The paper argues that it simply cannot deal with them, and should not try to.

Inflation is often confused with changes in relative prices. The recent sharp increase in energy prices, which has also pushed up food prices, has hit poorer households especially hard, thus creating the impression that inflation increases inequality. However, it is the large changes in relative prices and not the average inflation rate (of now 7%) that is the real problem. We also show that rents – which are more important for low-income households – provide a significant offset for higher energy ...

After inflation in the euro area started to rise to unprecedented levels, the ECB has tightened monetary policy rapidly. We analyse the implications of high inflation and the effects of monetary policy tightening on the euro area economy. While financial conditions have already tightened significantly, the size and timing of the impact on the real economy is more difficult to assess. Distributional effects can be expected to be modest and should not be a major concern for monetary policy.