Nearly 20 years after Spaniards adopted the euro, there has been no convergence with Germany while Eastern European economies are edging closer. In the 1990s, the Czech Republic was emerging from communism and it was producing just two-thirds of the wealth that Spain was. But in three decades, it has managed to beat the Spanish economy in terms of GDP per capita at PPP (or gross domestic product per person at purchasing power parity. Source El Pais
Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi said on Wednesday that new European Union rules on public finances should offer incentives for member states to increase investments. Addressing the lower house of parliament, Draghi said EU talks on how to revise its Stability Pact ought to produce rules that allow countries to adopt more anti-cyclical policies, meaning they can spend more in bad economic times.Source Yahoo
Around 100 km of the subsea Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline from Russia to Germany are left to lay, Russia’s ambassador to Germany, Sergei Nechayev, said May 8. In an interview with German media outlet RND, Nechayev also said he was hopeful the pipeline would be completed before the upcoming German election on Sept. 26. Source S & P Global
Already rising ahead of the summer travel season, U.S. gasoline prices could soon approach $3 a gallon depending on how long a major pipeline remains out of commission after a ransomware attack. “AAA forecasts gas prices to climb this week in reaction to the shutdown,” the auto club said on Monday. Source CBS News
