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Europe’s Businesses Face a Quiet Takeover as US Investors Capitalise

Europe’s Businesses Face a Quiet Takeover as US Investors Capitalise

Tej Gonza and Timothée Duverger

American investors are increasingly acquiring European companies, prompting calls for new ownership models to protect economic sovereignty.

Portugal’s Political Earthquake: Centrist Grip Crumbles, Right Ascends

Portugal’s Political Earthquake: Centrist Grip Crumbles, Right Ascends

Emanuel Ferreira

A seismic shift in Portugal’s 2025 elections reflects a broader Western trend: the erosion of centrist dominance and the rise of populist forces.

“The Universities Are the Enemy”: Why Europe Must Act Now

“The Universities Are the Enemy”: Why Europe Must Act Now

Bartosz Rydliński

The EU should welcome US scholars fleeing Trump’s assault on academia—and lead in global innovation and freedom.

Britain’s COVID Generation: Why Social Democracy Must Seize the Moment

Britain’s COVID Generation: Why Social Democracy Must Seize the Moment

Jatinder Hayre

COVID spotlighted inequality. Europe must act—or lose a generation to austerity’s long shadow and policy neglect.

Trump’s ‘Golden Era’ Fades as European Allies Face Harsh New Reality

Trump’s ‘Golden Era’ Fades as European Allies Face Harsh New Reality

Ferenc Németh and Peter Kreko

Once optimistic, key European leaders who backed Donald Trump now face stinging tariffs and a new, uncompromising Washington.

Closing the Chasm: Central and Eastern Europe’s Continued Minimum Wage Climb

Closing the Chasm: Central and Eastern Europe’s Continued Minimum Wage Climb

Carlos Vacas-Soriano and Christine Aumayr-Pintar

Minimum wages in Central and Eastern Europe continue to rise, narrowing the gap with Western European levels.

Ending Britain’s “Brief Encounter” with Brexit

Ending Britain’s “Brief Encounter” with Brexit

Stefan Stern

A romantic Brexit reset? UK and EU edge closer to ending their brief but painful post-referendum encounter.

The Future of American Soft Power

The Future of American Soft Power

Joseph S. Nye

Soft power helped America lead the world. Trump’s wrecking ball diplomacy risks handing that role to China.

Trump Can’t Kill the Boom: Why the US Economy Will Roar Despite Him

Trump Can’t Kill the Boom: Why the US Economy Will Roar Despite Him

Nouriel Roubini

Markets, innovation, and AI are overpowering Trump’s chaos—and pushing America toward 4% growth, recession or not.

How the Billionaire Boom Is Fueling Inequality—and Threatening Democracy

How the Billionaire Boom Is Fueling Inequality—and Threatening Democracy

Fernanda Balata and Sebastian Mang

As wealth concentrates at the top, Europe must act now to defend democracy and economic stability for all.

Why Europe Needs Its Own AI Infrastructure

Why Europe Needs Its Own AI Infrastructure

Diane Coyle

Trump’s return highlights why Europe must build its own AI ecosystem—secure, competitive, and true to its values.

Europe Day with New Dimensions

Europe Day with New Dimensions

László Andor and Udo Bullmann

Transatlantic Tensions Demand A New Geoeconomic Strategy For Europe.

How Europe’s Political Parties Abandoned Openness—and Left Populism to Fill the Void

How Europe’s Political Parties Abandoned Openness—and Left Populism to Fill the Void

Colin Crouch

Western parties stopped defending openness decades ago—now populists dominate a fight no one else dares to enter.

Funding the Future: Why the EU Needs a Bold New Budget

Funding the Future: Why the EU Needs a Bold New Budget

Carla Tavares

As the current long-term budget nears its end, the European Parliament is laying down its demands for a more ambitious financial framework to tackle mounting challenges.

The European Union’s Road to Abundance

The European Union’s Road to Abundance

Elizabeth Kuiper and Pietro Valetto

Why Europe must embrace an “abundance agenda” to deliver results, restore trust, and counter rising populism.

How Sweden’s Welfare Experiment Became a Warning to Europe

How Sweden’s Welfare Experiment Became a Warning to Europe

Lisa Pelling

Sweden pioneered welfare privatisation, and its controversial model is now being exported across the continent.

The Shadow of Unfreedom: A New Authoritarianism Grips the Globe

The Shadow of Unfreedom: A New Authoritarianism Grips the Globe

Robert Misik

A harsh, right-wing authoritarianism is rising, casting a shadow of unfreedom as classic conservatism fades.

Foundation for European Progressive Studies Advertisement

Spring Issues

The Spring issue of The Progressive Post is out!


Since President Trump’s inauguration, the US – hitherto the cornerstone of Western security – is destabilising the world order it helped to build. The US security umbrella is apparently closing on Europe, Ukraine finds itself less and less protected, and the traditional defender of free trade is now shutting the door to foreign goods, sending stock markets on a rollercoaster. How will the European Union respond to this dramatic landscape change? .


Among this issue’s highlights, we discuss European defence strategies, assess how the US president's recent announcements will impact international trade and explore the risks  and opportunities that algorithms pose for workers.


READ THE MAGAZINE

Hans Böckler Stiftung Advertisement

WSI Report

WSI Minimum Wage Report 2025

The trend towards significant nominal minimum wage increases is continuing this year. In view of falling inflation rates, this translates into a sizeable increase in purchasing power for minimum wage earners in most European countries. The background to this is the implementation of the European Minimum Wage Directive, which has led to a reorientation of minimum wage policy in many countries and is thus boosting the dynamics of minimum wages. Most EU countries are now following the reference values for adequate minimum wages enshrined in the directive, which are 60% of the median wage or 50 % of the average wage. However, for Germany, a structural increase is still necessary to make progress towards an adequate minimum wage.

DOWNLOAD HERE

S&D Group in the European Parliament advertisement

Cohesion Policy

S&D Position Paper on Cohesion Policy post-2027: a resilient future for European territorial equity”,

Cohesion Policy aims to promote harmonious development and reduce economic, social and territorial disparities between the regions of the Union, and the backwardness of the least favoured regions with a particular focus on rural areas, areas affected by industrial transition and regions suffering from severe and permanent natural or demographic handicaps, such as outermost regions, regions with very low population density, islands, cross-border and mountain regions.

READ THE FULL POSITION PAPER HERE

ETUI advertisement

HESA Magazine Cover

What kind of impact is artificial intelligence (AI) having, or likely to have, on the way we work and the conditions we work under? Discover the latest issue of HesaMag, the ETUI’s health and safety magazine, which considers this question from many angles.

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Eurofound advertisement

Ageing workforce
How are minimum wage levels changing in Europe?

In a new Eurofound Talks podcast episode, host Mary McCaughey speaks with Eurofound expert Carlos Vacas Soriano about recent changes to minimum wages in Europe and their implications.

Listeners can delve into the intricacies of Europe's minimum wage dynamics and the driving factors behind these shifts. The conversation also highlights the broader effects of minimum wage changes on income inequality and gender equality.

Listen to the episode for free. Also make sure to subscribe to Eurofound Talks so you don’t miss an episode!

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