News about EU

Net foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows into Moldova in 2025 totaled 408 million euros, while the total volume of accumulated investment exceeded 5.4 billion euros. European Union countries remained the main investors. At the same time, our country has fallen into a negative trend characteristic of most of its neighbors in the Central and Eastern European region.

Romania ranked third in a list of Europe’s most dangerous countries for drivers, compiled by the Swiss company Vignette Switzerland. Only Serbia and Bulgaria ranked higher. The study was published in the midst of the summer vacation season, when millions of Europeans set out on road trips.

A quarter of a century ago, the market capitalization of each of the five largest banks in the EU exceeded that of the largest U.S. bank.

Against the backdrop of the ongoing migration crisis, Italy plans to propose the establishment of migrant repatriation centers in Armenia, which has been included on the preliminary list of countries to host such facilities.

Small livestock farms will be allowed to be located and operate within populated areas, provided they comply with a number of requirements regarding the location of facilities, the number of animals, and compliance with sanitary and veterinary standards. The corresponding bill was drafted by Representative Yuri Levinski, a member of the Committee on Agriculture and the Food Industry.

Solar-powered parking lots are popping up all over Europe, but not all countries consider them a profitable investment.

Thanks to the Interreg Danube program, Chisinau has become better known among tourists from the European Union. The capital city’s project to promote tourism at the local level is featured as an example of best practice on the official website of this European program.

Moldova will introduce new mechanisms for managing banking crises and establish a minimum requirement for own funds and eligible liabilities (MREL) that banks and certain investment companies must meet.

Preliminary data show that the European economy “remains resilient” despite the recent sharp rise in energy prices. The eurozone economy grew by 0.4% in the second quarter of this year, exceeding widespread expectations of a slowdown due to the war with Iran. On a year-over-year basis, GDP growth was 1.0%.

PARIS—For many years, Europe and China have embodied competing models of development and energy transition. Europe has emphasized markets, common rules, and multilateral organizations, while China has focused on industrial policy, infrastructure investment, and manufacturing. Europe developed regulations that often became global benchmarks (the “Brussels effect”). Meanwhile, China built factories.

The retirement age in Europe continues to rise, but this trend is uneven. While people in some countries retire at age 62, in others they will have to work until age 70. Under current rules, the highest retirement age is in Denmark, where workers will not be able to retire until age 74.

Currently, their operations are regulated by the Capital Markets Act and the Act on Alternative Collective Investment Organizations. The National Financial Market Commission proposes to consolidate the rules, regulate areas not yet covered by the law, and bring it into line with EU regulations.

This fall, a new regional project called “Treasures of the East” will launch, dedicated to promoting the wines, cuisine, and tourist destinations of Moldova, Romania, and Bulgaria. The initiative aims to bring together producers from the three countries and provide them with a common platform for promotion in international markets.

Before wrapping up the topic of the bid price index, it’s worth adding something specific to Moldova—something that explains not why this methodological error occurs (this is a universal issue; regulators make this mistake almost everywhere), but why, specifically in Moldova, there is no one to correct it in time.

Italy has suspended the Schengen Agreement with Spain, stepping up controls at its sea and air borders. The government of Giorgia Meloni made this decision following a sharp escalation of the migration crisis in the Spanish enclave of Ceuta, where thousands of migrants have arrived.

Elon Musk drew attention to the demographic situation in the European Union, noting the threat of extinction facing Western nations amid declining birth rates. The entrepreneur commented on UN statistics showing a decline in the fertility rate in the world’s largest economies since 1950 and a decrease in the population of Western nations.

Media freedom, European integration, and reform processes in Moldova are the main topics of a recent shadow report published by the Independent Journalism Center (IJC) in collaboration with OBCT and ActiveWatch.

The Paks Nuclear Power Plant had to be shut down due to record-low water levels in the Danube, whose water is used to cool the reactors. Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Mádor warned of the threat of an energy crisis—the Paks plant generates nearly half of the country’s electricity.

In July, Italy became Europe’s largest buyer of liquefied natural gas (LNG). While many EU countries are cutting back on purchases due to high prices, Rome is banking on building up large reserves ahead of winter.

The European Union will allocate €10 billion to build seven major centers for the development of artificial intelligence. Brussels hopes this will help it close the gap with the United States and China in the field of AI and establish its own technological base.