News about International trade
French automobile concern Renault has announced large-scale plans to update the model range: by the end of the decade the company intends to introduce 36 new cars. This is stated in the official message of the manufacturer.
Moldova has developed a draft law that will regulate the secondment of workers abroad to provide transnational services within Moldova and the EU. It includes their labor conditions, as well as requirements for remuneration, expenses, etc. The new law will include the provisions of the relevant European directives. It will become effective at the moment of Moldova’s accession to the EU.
Despite rising climate risks, production and logistics costs, as well as agricultural restructuring and changing consumer preferences, European horticulture is showing resilience and adaptability.
China started 2026 with unexpectedly strong foreign trade figures. According to the General Administration of Customs of the People’s Republic of China, the country’s exports in January-February grew by 21.8% year-on-year, significantly exceeding analysts’ expectations and becoming the fastest growth rate in recent years.
Aramco, the world’s top oil company, said Tuesday that the conflict with Iran continues to disrupt shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, which could have “catastrophic consequences” for global oil markets.
In February 2026, Moldova exported just over 11 thousand tons of apples. This is about 500 tons more than in the previous month. But 2 thousand tons less than in February of the previous year.
US President Donald Trump has said the US-Israeli operation against Iran will end soon.
The government and importers of petroleum products have analyzed several options and mechanisms that could be applied to ensure that a possible price increase would be “gradual” and would not have a drastic impact on consumers.
A complete ban on imports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Russia by EU countries will come into force on January 1, 2027. In the meantime, Europeans are actively buying Russian LNG.
The conflict in the Middle East has begun to have a noticeable impact on global apparel supply chains. Due to airspace closures and flight cancellations, many shipments from South Asia have been blocked at airports, creating serious problems for manufacturers and international retailers.
No EU country has tapped its strategic oil reserves because of the escalation in the Middle East, European Commission spokeswoman Ana Kaiza Itkonen told a briefing on Monday.
“Tomorrow or the day after tomorrow, police officers and firefighters may be left without fuel for their vehicles,” said Democrația Acasă faction MP Sergiu Stefanco, a member of the Agriculture and Food Industry Commission. He insists on an urgent state of emergency in the energy sector.
The EU and Canada have started negotiations on the so-called Digital Trade Agreement (DTA) amid Europe’s conflict with the US over digital regulation.
The National Energy Regulatory Agency (ANRE) stated that the hostilities in the Persian Gulf continue to have a significant impact on the prices of crude oil and petroleum products.
The sugar market is not about “sweetness”, but about economy in its purest form: excess supply, rising costs and managerial mistakes are instantly converted into price. That is why there is always a lot of information noise around sugar – slogans “let’s provide the market with our own”, “the market needs protection”, “importers are enemies”. But the noise does not change the main thing: the market does not punish imports – the market punishes inefficiency. And today this is evident all over Europe.
UPDATED. Israel’s massive strikes on 30 Iranian fuel depots “far exceeded” U.S. expectations and provoked a major rift between the allies for the first time since the military operation against Iran began.
According to Politico, last week EU ambassadors actually “buried” the idea of accelerated accession, stressing that membership should be based solely on merit and full fulfillment of the criteria. Earlier, the publication also wrote that Ukraine’s hopes for quick accession to the EU had been dashed.
The incident with an air strike on Nakhchivan is not related to Iran and will be investigated. This was stated by President of the Islamic Republic of Iran Masoud Pezeshkian during a telephone conversation with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev.
Early this Monday morning in Asia, Brent crude was up about 15.5% to $107.16/bbl, while U.S. Nymex Light Sweet crude was up more than 17% to $106.77/bbl.
Iraq’s oil production has fallen sharply amid ongoing conflict with Iran and problems with exports through the Strait of Hormuz.
