Europe
Long-delayed Romanian motorway will help Ukraine
A 450-kilometre route through eastern Romania will help to export Ukraine’s grain and bypass neighbours’ blockades
RomaniaIrish unity vote remains a long distance away
Sinn Fein wants to hold a referendum on Irish unity within the next decade
IrelandSpain’s migrant pressures look set to grow
The number of irregular migrants arriving in the Canary Islands reached unprecedented levels last year`
SpainPoland’s population trends suggest long-term decline
Persistently falling birth rates accompany Poland’s rising old-age dependency and shrinking labour force
PolandSouthern resilience may cushion the euro-area downturn
The euro-area services PMIs saw the Southern economies outperforming the North, though the UK PMI was strong
InternationalDigital euro will launch but perhaps later than 2027
Plans for the digital euro see a 2027 launch but the ECB still needs to win support from commercial banks and citizens
InternationalEU agreement shows weakness of Orban’s threats
Hungary’s Viktor Orban quickly lifted his veto on EU financial support for Ukraine during yesterday’s summit
UkraineHungary’s policy shift may not cost Orban domestically
Orban’s control of most media will allow him to ‘spin’ his about-face on EU funding for Ukraine and probably NATO too
Hungary
