Europe

"Offshore", "tax haven" and more recently "Panama in the EU" are labels that Malta has done its best to shake off.

The Institute of Financial Services Practitioners (IFSP) said on Thursday that the a series of “sensationalist” media reports in parts of the international tabloid press, referred to as the “Malta Files” contain several inaccuracies and false statements.

“Maltese financial services practitioners operate within a legal and regulatory framework of the highest standards. Malta is a full member of the European Union and all its laws, including anti-money laundering rules, are fully aligned with European rules and best practice.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Sunday declared a new chapter in U.S.-European relations after contentious meetings with President Trump last week, saying that Europe "really must take our fate into our own hands."

It was the toughest review yet of Trump’s trip to Europe, which inflamed tensions rather than healing them after the U.S. president sparred with the leaders of Washington’s closest and oldest allies on trade, defense and climate change.

The ECB kept its monetary policy unchanged. Though, strong economic recovery may encourage policymakers to start tightening monetary conditions. Do you share this point of view?

At this point, we agree that the Euro zone’s economy is strengthening. We have recently revised our forecast for this year, though I think the key point here is that the ECB has not really seen any reasonable signs of an economic recovery. We have seen a little bit stronger inflation earlier in the year due to energy effects; however, inflation is probably going to be lower this year than we thought six months ago. Even if the Euro zone economy is picking up steam, we certainly do not expect the ECB to start raising interest rates until 2019.

The Catalan Government decided on Tuesday to formally request negotiations with the Spanish government on the terms and conditions for carrying out the independence referendum.

In the next few days, the Catalan President, Carles Puigdemont, will send a letter to the Spanish Prime Minister, Mariano Rajoy, which will include the text approved on Tuesday at the Executive Council of the Catalan government, the Catalan Minister of Presidency and Government Spokesperson, Neus Munté, explained in declarations to the press.

Little Luxembourg is luring firms on the lookout for a post-Brexit foothold in the European Union, from JPMorgan Chase & Co. to insurance giant American International Group Inc.

Bloomberg News reports that while many find the Grand Duchy a multilingual paradise, would-be expats are being warned not to expect the cosmopolitan lifestyle they currently enjoy in London and that they should prepare to spend long hours on clogged roads.

A suicide bomber has killed at least 22 and injured scores more, in an attack on a Manchester concert of US artist Ariana Grande packed with thousands of young people. The bomb went off at about 10.30pm Monday in the Manchester Arena foyer, just after the end of Grande’s concert.

On Tuesday morning, Manchester police chief constable Ian Hopkins said police believed the attack was conducted by one man who detonated an improvised explosive device. He died at the scene. It was police’s "priority to determine if he was acting alone or part of a network", he said.

Greece’s parliament has approved a new package of austerity measures needed to release the next instalment of its multi-billion-dollar bailout, as angry demonstrators protested outside parliament against the new round of austerity.

The measures, which entail $5.4bn in cuts to be implemented in 2019 and 2020, were backed late on Thursday by all 153 members of parliament in Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras’ ruling coalition after a fiery debate.
The legislation was backed by all 153 deputies in Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras’ left-led coalition. All 128 opposition lawmakers present in the 300-member parliament stood against the measures in a vote just before midnight.

Recent years have seen strong growth trends in the European corporate debt markets. This has provided a solid base for EHY to grow, becoming increasingly diversified with improved overall credit quality. Rather unsurprisingly, it is more appealing to investors as a result. With two full credit cycles since the late 1990’s behind it, the EHY sector is now an integral part of the global leveraged finance market. It may still be perceived as the smaller sibling of US High Yield, but that masks how fast it is growing and maturing.