European shares treaded water as investors awaited the signing of an initial trade truce to end a prolonged U.S.-China tariff dispute, with attention also turning to the fourth-quarter corporate earnings season. The Phase 1 Sino-U.S. trade deal, due to be signed in Washington soon, marks the first step in winding down the prolonged and damaging trade war. In further signs of goodwill, ...

Russia is poised to officially open its TurkStream natural gas pipeline, further diversifying export routes to Europe amid a backlash from the US President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan are meeting in Istanbul to inaugurate the pipeline in a ceremony celebrating the nations’ energy and political ties. TurkStream is set to carry Russian gas under the Black ...

According to data, German industrial output posted its biggest increase in 1-1/2 years in November, in a sign that Europe’s largest economy gained momentum in the fourth quarter. Industrial production rose by 1.1% on the month, beating expectations for a 0.7% rise, figures from the statistics office showed. That was driven by stronger production in manufacturing and booming construction. Germany’s export-dependent ...

Mining activity in the European Union has gone from being a very visible driver of European economic growth to an activity that is more out of sight and out of mind. But with raw material access coming into question, mining in Europe may be coming back into the spotlight. Today, the EU imports most of the materials it uses rather than ...

The United States and France are racing to reach a compromise in a digital tax dispute that could result in hefty American tariffs on French wine, cheese, handbags, cookware and more. The French finance minister, said that he had spoken with Steven Mnuchin, the Treasury secretary, about a new French tax on Facebook, Google and other American technology giants. The tax ...

Western Europe boasts a spider-web of roads, highways, railroads, canals and pipelines. They span borders and have been crucial to trade and economic growth. But Central Europe’s main cross-border infrastructure remains limited to a few east-west transit routes and pipelines. There are no major north-south economic corridors. Consequently, the region operates like a set of islands with limited connectivity and ...

White House advisor Peter Navarro said the “phase one” trade deal between the U.S. and China is “in the bank.” Navarro, a longtime China trade hawk, refrained from commenting on rumors that the deal could be signed by U.S. and Chinese officials as early as next week, saying he would rather defer to U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer on specific timing. ...

EU-China relations stand at a new historical starting point. China senses an opportunity as the EU could be the next target of a United States effort to replace multilateral trade rules with managed trade. China may expect some wins in Europe in 2020 in the area of 5G infrastructure. Huawei has signed 20 commercial contracts with European operators. Before the ...

European policy makers hope that stronger growth will materialize as global headwinds recede. But a look at what awaits the four largest European economies next year shows that governments everywhere are hanging at the mercy of a continuous slowdown, as the persistent recession of the manufacturing sector begins to spill over into the rest of the economy. Many countries also suffer from self-inflicted harm ...

Europe faces hostility from the US, China and Russia owing to its undeniable economic weight in the world and principle of shared sovereignty. But it is still far away from achieving strategic and economic autonomy. The European model, after all, is based on the principle of shared sovereignty among states in crucial areas such as market standards and trade. That liberal ...