In brief | 23 April ‘26
Reuters: Germany halves 2026 growth forecast, raises inflation outlook amid Iran war
Germany's economy ministry cut its growth forecasts for 2026 and 2027 and raised its inflation projections on Wednesday, as the Iran war drives up oil and gas prices.
FT: German chancellor Merz defends industry against EU climate policy
Divisions over response to Middle East energy crisis evident at annual discussions held in Berlin.
KPMG: International investors are losing confidence in Germany as a business location
More than half of CFOs (52 percent) currently rate the economic situation of their German subsidiaries as “poor” or “very poor”; 23 percent plan to reduce their investments in Germany.
Politico: EU to prioritize jet fuel supplies in new emergency energy package
The AccelerateEU plan contains non-binding recommendations promising to help member states make use of existing rules.
Reuters: Iran war revives European rooftop solar demand to cut energy bills
Demand for rooftop solar systems across Europe has surged since the start of the Iran war, as households rush to shield themselves from soaring power prices triggered by the worst global energy disruption in history.
Elia: Five European TSOs investigate cooperation on offshore cable infrastructure in the North Sea
Intention of Transmission System Operators (TSOs) from Belgium, Denmark, Germany, and the Netherlands is to enhance the affordability, efficiency, and reliability of the future electricity system by boosting cooperation on offshore cable infrastructure in the North Sea.
ACER: Middle East impact: Filling EU gas storage will be expensive in a competitive LNG market
European gas prices will remain highly sensitive to global shocks. The Middle East conflict and strong competition with Asian markets for flexible LNG cargoes will be the main drivers of price spikes, finds ACER's latest gas Monitoring Report.
Fondation Robert Schuman: The 2026 oil crisis: an opportunity for Europe's energy transition
Progress made in electricity generation shows that a transition pathway is possible: the challenge now is to extend and accelerate this momentum to benefit end-use sectors: electrified transport, decarbonised heating, and a less carbon-intensive industry.
Euronews: The window to protect global health from climate change is rapidly closing, report warns
Heat deaths, infectious diseases and food insecurity are rising across Europe as political action and public awareness lag behind, according to the 2026 Lancet Countdown report.
Bloomberg: How Microsoft spooked the global carbon removal market
Many projects around the world have developed a “Microsoft or bust” business model, says Lee Bostock, founding partner at Vuelta Carbon.
The Conversation: Forty years after the Chernobyl disaster, its legacy still resonates
The explosion at the fourth reactor of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in northern Ukraine on April 26, 1986, changed the lives of thousands of Soviet citizens.
Reuters opinion: Germany is sleepwalking into permanent stagnation
Merz and his coalition partners must now choose between the political risk of reform and the economic danger of permanent stasis.