Der freischtz

BERLIN: The German government is making part of its 9 billion euro (US$10.10 billion) bailout fund available to Lufthansa immediately after shareholders backed the rescue plan on Thursday, Der Spiegel magazine reported on Friday. Without citing its sources, the magazine said the economy ministry had agreed with state-backed bank KfW that a 3 billion euro loan can be tapped immediately. A Lufthansa spokesman said the money from the KfW credit should flow as soon as possible. The government had prepared for a possible rejection of the bailout by shareholder Heinz Hermann Thiele by preparing to immediately announce a capital injection of 6 billion euros, the magazine added. But Thiele dropped his objections to the deal ahead of Lufthansa's extraordinary general meeting on Thursday. (Reporting by Klaus Lauer and Emma Thomasson; Editing by Michelle Martin) … [Read more...] about Germany opens part of bailout fund to Lufthansa now – Der Spiegel

The EU will present plans for a coronavirus “vaccine passport” later this month, the head of the bloc revealed today. Ursula von der Leyen said the Digital Green Pass would aim to show proof someone has been vaccinated and test results for someone without a jab yet. The European Commission President said the body would “present a legislative proposal” later this month. She tweeted: “The Digital Green Pass should facilitate Europeans‘ lives. The aim is to gradually enable them to move safely in the European Union or abroad - for work or tourism.” The announcement raises fresh hopes about holidays on the Continent. But it’s thought any scheme would take three months to come to fruition and it is not intended to be used by people outside the EU - at least not at first. That means Brits would not be able to use the scheme for holidays to Europe until it is “scaled up” globally, now that the UK is outside the European Union. A European Commission spokesman told the Daily … [Read more...] about EU to unveil plans for digital Covid vaccine passport this month

BRUSSELS: A global fundraising meeting on Saturday (Jun 27) raised €6.15 billion (US$6.9 billion ) from the United States, the European Commission and numerous countries to fight COVID-19, with many participants stressing that an eventual vaccine should be available to anyone who needs it. The pledging summit, part of a joint initiative by the EU executive and advocacy group Global Citizen, also included a globally televised and streamed fundraising concert featuring Miley Cyrus, Justin Bieber, Shakira, Chloe X Halle, Usher and others. The Commission together with the European Investment Bank pledged €4.9 billion, the United States US$545 million, Germany €383 million, Canada C$300 million (US$219 million) and Qatar US$10 million. Forty governments took part in the summit. The money will be used for COVID-19 tests, treatments and vaccines, and also to support the world’s poorest and most marginalised communities. Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said it was crucial … [Read more...] about Global COVID-19 fundraising meeting raises US$6.9 billion

BERLIN: BMW should shift course and establish a technology platform just for electric cars, moving away from developing cars that can be fitted with either electric or combustion engines, the head of the influential works council said. "Only with our own e-architecture can we fully exploit the advantages of an electric vehicle," Manfred Schoch told Der Spiegel magazine. Schoch said a dedicated electric platform is needed if the German luxury carmaker is not to be overtaken by competitors from California - like electric car company Tesla - or from China. Spiegel said Schoch's call comes after some BMW managers have pushed for a new electric strategy internally for some time. Those managers hope that the company will now quickly shift to develop a pure e-platform, which would make cars lighter and give them a longer battery range and a bigger interior. Asked about the report, a BMW spokesman said the company was currently "optimally positioned" and declined to comment on … [Read more...] about BMW works council backs electric-only platform-report

BRUSSELS/LONDON: The European Union is investigating Germany's financial regulator over the collapse of payments company Wirecard in a rare move that heaps embarrassment on Berlin days before it is due to take over the EU's rotating presidency. Wirecard's implosion on Thursday, owing creditors almost US$4 billion, is shaping up to be one of Germany’s biggest corporate scandals, and regulator BaFin has come under fire at home and abroad for not spotting problems sooner. The European Commission has asked the EU's markets watchdog to assess if BaFin's responses to allegations of improprieties at Wirecard, which stretch back years, were adequate to protect investor confidence in EU markets, according to a letter from the Commission to the EU watchdog. News of the letter, seen by Reuters, came as the Philippines justice minister said Wirecard's former operations chief, under suspicion in Germany over the accounting scandal, was in the Philippines this week, but had left for China. … [Read more...] about EU investigating German watchdog over Wirecard collapse