|
|
|
European Commission Spokesman's Briefing for 00-04-18
From: EUROPA, the European Commission Server at <http://europa.eu.int>
MIDDAY EXPRESS
News from the Spokesman's midday briefing
Nouvelles du rendez-vous de midi du Service Presse et Communicationb
18/04/2000
CONTENTS / CONTENU
[I] Résultats de la Commission de ce jour - Outcome of today's Commission
meeting
[01] Commission identifies priorities for ASEM 3
[02] La Commission approuve un prêt Euratom de € 212,5 millions pour la
modernisation de deux centrales nucléaires à Kozloduy - Bulgarie
[II] Other news - Autres nouvelles
[03] EC to request WTO Consultations with Chile over prohibition of
unloading of swordfish in Chilean ports
[04] La Commission ouvre une enquête approfondie concernant le projet de
rachat de BICC par Pirelli
[05] Commission gives go-ahead to joint venture between Reuters and Equant
[06] Commission approves Polycarbonate plates joint venture of Bayer and
Röhm The European Commission has decided to clear the operation by which
the German companies Bayer AG and Röhm GmbH will extend their cooperation
in the business of PC (polycarbonate)-plates by transferring their
production and distribution to Makroform GmbH.
[07] Nomination de Philip Lowe comme chef de cabinet de Neil Kinnock
[08] Euro-zone annual inflation up to 2.1% in March 2000 - EU15 stable at
1.9%
[09] Central European candidate countries' per capita GDP below 75% of EU
average in 48 regions out of 50
[I] Résultats de la Commission de ce jour - Outcome of today's Commission
meeting
[01] Commission identifies priorities for ASEM 3
The European Commission today released a Working Document addressing future
perspectives and priorities in the ASEM process (Asia-Europe Meeting). The
third ASEM Summit will be held in Seoul, South Korea on 20-21 October 2000,
with the participation of President Romano Prodi of the European Commission,
the fifteen Member States of the EU, and the Heads of State and Government
from ten Asian countries (Brunei, China, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea,
Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, Singapore, Vietnam). The Commission
proposes specific priorities for the Summit, including security issues,
stronger cooperation on trade and economic issues, intensified cooperation
on education and consumer protection and a possible enlargement of
participation in ASEM
[02] La Commission approuve un prêt Euratom de € 212,5 millions pour la
modernisation de deux centrales nucléaires à Kozloduy - Bulgarie
La Commission européenne a approuvé aujourd'hui au nom d'Euratom l'octroi
d'un prêt à la Compagnie nationale bulgare d'électricité (NEK) pour le
renforcement de la sécurité et la modernisation des unités 5 et 6 de la
centrale nucléaire de Kozloduy, en Bulgarie. Le projet porte sur la
modernisation et l'amélioration jusqu'à un niveau de sûreté acceptable sur
le plan international de deux réacteurs nucléaires VVER 1000 de troisième
génération, fonctionnant déjà en Bulgarie à proximité de la frontière
roumaine. Le projet est déjà entré dans sa phase préparatoire. Il implique
aussi bien un consortium européen que des organismes américains.
[II] Other news - Autres nouvelles
[03] EC to request WTO Consultations with Chile over prohibition of
unloading of swordfish in Chilean ports
Today the European Commission has decided to begin WTO dispute settlement
procedures against the Republic of Chile, to challenge its unilateral ban
on Community vessels unloading swordfish catches in its ports which has
existed since 1991. The decision to request consultations with Chile has
been taken after an investigation under the Trade Barriers Regulation (TBR)
revealed that the Chilean measures contravene WTO rules. The EC has taken
this step with a view to securing free and fair access to Chilean ports for
Community vessels.
[04] La Commission ouvre une enquête approfondie concernant le projet de
rachat de BICC par Pirelli
La Commission européenne a décidé aujourd'hui d'ouvrir un examen approfondi
concernant un projet d'opération par lequel le fabricant de câble italien
Pirelli Cavi e Sistemi reprendrait les installations de production du
fabricant de câble américain BICC General. Ces installations sont situées
au Royaume Uni et en Italie. Les marchés en cause dans cette opération sont
principalement ceux de la production et de la vente de câblage en général
et de câbles électriques destinés aux exploitants de réseaux d'électricité
et à différents clients industriels. L'opération soulève des doutes
concurrentiels dans le domaine des câbles électriques à très haute, haute,
moyenne et basse tension puisque Pirelli/BICC détiendraient des parts de
marché combinées très élevées, tant à un niveau national qu'européen, avec
un écart considérable par rapport aux fabricants restants.
[05] Commission gives go-ahead to joint venture between Reuters and Equant
The European Commission has approved the creation of a joint venture by
Reuters Group PLC ("Reuters") and Equant NV ("Equant"). The joint venture,
provisionally named "Proton", will be active in the provision of Internet
Protocol (IP) based networking services, with a focus on providing secure
extranet services to the financial community. Extranets are private
networks that use Internet Protocols and the public telecommunications
system to communicate business information or operations with suppliers,
vendors, partners, customers or other businesses.
[06] Commission approves Polycarbonate plates joint venture of Bayer and
Röhm The European Commission has decided to clear the operation by which
the German companies Bayer AG and Röhm GmbH will extend their cooperation
in the business of PC (polycarbonate)-plates by transferring their
production and distribution to Makroform GmbH.
[07] Nomination de Philip Lowe comme chef de cabinet de Neil Kinnock
Philippe Lowe, actuellement Directeur Général de la DG Développement de la
Commission européenne, va prendre les fonctions de chef de cabinet du Vice-
Président Neil Kinnock.
[08] Euro-zone annual inflation up to 2.1% in March 2000 - EU15 stable at
1.9%
Euro-zone annual inflation rose from 2.0% in February to 2.1% in March,
Eurostat the Statistical Office of the European Communities in Luxembourg
reports today. EU 15 annual inflation remained stable at 1.9% in March. In
March 1999 it was 1.2%, EEA annual inflation remained stable at 1.9% in
March. Annual inflation fell in Switzerland from 1.6% to 1.5% and rose in
the USA from 3.2% to 3.7%. Highest annual rates were in Ireland (5.0%),
Finland (3.2%), Denmark, Spain, and Luxembourg (all 3.0%). Lowest rates
were in the United Kingdom (0.7%), Portugal and Sweden (both 1.4%). Lowest
12-month averages up to March were in Sweden (0.8%), France and Austria
(0.9%).
[09] Central European candidate countries' per capita GDP below 75% of EU
average in 48 regions out of 50
Of the 50 regions in the candidate countries of Central Europe, 48
registered a per capita GDP current below 75% of the EU15 average for the
period 1995 to 1997. This level was exceeded only by the regions Praha in
the Czech Republic and Bratislavsky in Slovakia, which recorded figures of
119% and 96% respectively. This information is provided by Eurostat, the
Statistical Office of the European Communities in Luxembourg, in a report
published today. The regional figures were calculated in accordance with
the same principles used for the regional classification of the EU Member
States.
MIDDAY EXPRESS
From EUROPA, the European Commission Server at http://europa.eu.int/
© ECSC - EC - EAEC, Brussels-Luxembourg, 1995, 1996
|
