Latest news with #GiuliaSegreti
Yahoo
16-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
US tariffs and weak dollar threaten Italian exports, says industry chief
By Giulia Segreti ROME (Reuters) -The only acceptable tariff on European Union exports to the United States would be zero as the bloc is already facing a detrimental exchange rate, the head of Italy's business lobby said on Wednesday. "The real issue is that, to date, not only do we have to consider the burden of tariffs, but we must add to that the euro's appreciation against the dollar," said Confindustria President Emanuele Orsini. The euro has risen by more than 12% against the dollar since the start of the year. Orsini said the dollar's devaluation against the euro "is the biggest in the world" and that Confindustria's projections indicate that it would increase in the coming months, to reach up to 20%. "Any tariff level on top of that is out of control," since the cheaper dollar represents the "highest tariff that (Europe) already faces... making us lame from the start", Orsini said at a conference in Rome. U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday threatened to impose a 30% tariff on imports from Mexico and the European Union starting on August 1, a level European officials say is unacceptable and would end normal trade between two of the world's largest markets. According to Confindustria, each percentage point of tariffs imposed by the U.S. would translate into a loss of Italian exports worth 874 million euros ($1 billion). The association did not specify over what amount of time. With 30% tariffs, Italy would lose 37.5 billion euros in exports, Orsini said, factoring in the exchange rate impact. Earlier this month he had already warned that tariffs of 10% would have been unsustainable for the Italian economy. Orsini added that Trump's final goal was to "relocate Europe's major companies to the United States" and called on the European Union to set out a plan to hold on to its businesses. ($1 = 0.8608 euros)
Yahoo
24-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Europe we have a problem: shared satellite venture is still a giant leap away
By Giulia Segreti PARIS (Reuters) -Europe's drive to create a satellite manufacturing champion is taking longer than planned, and debates over costs, competition policy and who might participate could continue to hamper progress despite French calls for greater urgency. Under so-called "Project Bromo", named after an Indonesian volcano, Airbus, Italy's Leonardo and France's Thales are looking at creating a joint space company to better compete with China and Elon Musk's Starlink. The move is part of a broader attempt by the region to boost sovereign capabilities in areas from defence to finance amid heightened geopolitical tensions and shifting U.S. policies. But progress has been modest, prompting French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday to try to inject fresh impetus into the process. There's no time to lose. Demand in the commercial satellite market is shifting towards low Earth orbit constellations like Starlink's - which offer better signal strength, lower latency and wider coverage than traditional geostationary satellites - and European firms are scrambling to keep up. And there are many challenges to overcome, executives at the Paris Airshow warned last week. "In this sector, Europe has missed quite a few trains. There is much to do, so we must be patient. There are a lot of layers to it," said Leonardo CEO Roberto Cingolani, a staunch supporter of cross-border alliances. Even the potential make-up of the alliance is not yet clear. As talks proceed, France and Italy are now also considering reaching out to Germany and Spain in order to achieve the greater scale needed to push down high manufacturing costs. Italy's Defence Minister Guido Crosetto said it wasn't "about politics, but rather industrial capacity", adding that Europe's space industry needed to be more cost-competitive. "What is needed is clear, it's investments. These are key for the European and French industry," added Benoit Hancart, head of institutional relations at Thales Alenia Space. PRELIMINARY PHASE Airbus, Leonardo and Thales are looking to assess the feasibility of a partnership by July, Cingolani told reporters at the air show, although people working on the deal say it could take longer. The possible alliance aims to pool the space assets of the three companies together in a way similar to European missile maker MBDA, jointly owned by Airbus, Leonardo and Britain's BAE Systems. The current joint ventures between Leonardo and Thales - Thales Alenia Space and Telespazio - are likely to be pulled in too, but a clear business plan has not yet been laid out. Leonardo Chairman Stefano Pontecorvo told Reuters that the parties were still at a "preliminary phase, with still many numbers that need to be seen". Despite the early stage, the three groups have already started preliminary talks with European Union antitrust regulators, in what is known as a "pre-notification phase". Like Airbus, Pontecorvo called on EU regulators to take a broad view of the competitive landscape, hoping they would not make "the fundamental error of applying the same mechanisms of the internal market to the defence and space industry". "While consumers must be allowed to have a wide choice and be able to get the best deal possible, in high-tech, high-investment sectors like space you have to create European champions that are able to compete," Pontecorvo said
Time of India
18-06-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Leonardo, Airbus, Thales to assess feasibility of space alliance by end-July
By Giulia Segreti PARIS: European aerospace companies Leonardo Thales and Airbus will assess the feasibility of a space alliance by the end of July, Leonardo CEO Roberto Cingolani said on Tuesday at the Paris Airshow. Under so-called " Project Bromo ", named after an Indonesian volcano, the three groups have been exploring plans to set up a new joint space company as Europe looks to compete with Elon Musk's Starlink. Cingolani said that by the end of next month the three groups would have assessed several aspects of a potential partnership, including possible European antitrust hurdles, financial due diligence, and "the value creation" of the venture. "The business model will take more time, however," the CEO added, speaking to reporters, He confirmed that the structure of the alliance would be similar to that of Europe's top missile maker MBDA, owned by Airbus, Leonardo and BAE Systems, although "slightly different in governance". Cingolani also said that Leonardo and Thales - which already have two joint ventures in the space sector, namely Thales Alenia Space and Telespazio - were considering merging these into the new entity. "It's a moment when we are discussing all scenarios," he said. Separately, Italian Industry Minister Adolfo Urso told reporters that he hoped talks over a potential Italian-French space alliance could include Germany too. "We are in tune with Germany and the new German government on many industrial dossiers," Urso said.
Yahoo
17-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Leonardo, Airbus, Thales to assess feasibility of space alliance by end-July
By Giulia Segreti PARIS (Reuters) -European aerospace companies Leonardo Thales and Airbus will assess the feasibility of a space alliance by the end of July, Leonardo CEO Roberto Cingolani said on Tuesday at the Paris Airshow. Under so-called "Project Bromo", named after an Indonesian volcano, the three groups have been exploring plans to set up a new joint space company as Europe looks to compete with Elon Musk's Starlink. Cingolani said that by the end of next month the three groups would have assessed several aspects of a potential partnership, including possible European antitrust hurdles, financial due diligence, and "the value creation" of the venture. "The business model will take more time, however," the CEO added, speaking to reporters, He confirmed that the structure of the alliance would be similar to that of Europe's top missile maker MBDA, owned by Airbus, Leonardo and BAE Systems, although "slightly different in governance". Cingolani also said that Leonardo and Thales - which already have two joint ventures in the space sector, namely Thales Alenia Space and Telespazio - were considering merging these into the new entity. "It's a moment when we are discussing all scenarios," he said. Separately, Italian Industry Minister Adolfo Urso told reporters that he hoped talks over a potential Italian-French space alliance could include Germany too. "We are in tune with Germany and the new German government on many industrial dossiers," Urso said. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
16-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Israel furious as France shuts weapons stands at Paris Airshow
By Paul Sandle, Giulia Segreti, Steven Scheer and Tim Hepher PARIS/JERUSALEM (Reuters) -France shut down the main Israeli company stands at the Paris Airshow on Monday for refusing to remove attack weapons from display, sparking a furious response from Israel and inflaming tensions between the traditional allies. Stands including those of Elbit Systems, Rafael, IAI and Uvision were blocked off with black partitions before the start of the world's biggest aviation trade fair. Smaller Israeli stands, which didn't have hardware on display, and an Israeli Ministry of Defence stand, remained open. France, a long-time Israeli ally, has gradually hardened its position on the government of Benjamin Netanyahu over its actions in Gaza and military interventions abroad. French President Emmanuel Macron made a distinction last week between Israel's right to protect itself, which France supports and could take part in, and strikes on Iran it did not recommend. The office of French Prime Minister Francois Bayrou said it had told all exhibitors ahead of the show that offensive weapons would be prohibited from display and that Israel's embassy in Paris had agreed to this. It added that the companies could resume their exhibits if they complied with this requirement. Bayrou told reporters that given France's diplomatic stance, and "in particular its ... very great concern about Gaza", the government had felt it unacceptable for attack weapons to be on show. But Israel's defence ministry reacted with fury. "This outrageous and unprecedented decision reeks of policy-driven and commercial considerations," it said in a statement. "The French are hiding behind supposedly political considerations to exclude Israeli offensive weapons from an international exhibition - weapons that compete with French industries." The ministry later added it was filing court petitions against the decision. IAI's president and CEO, Boaz Levy, said the black partitions were reminiscent of "the dark days of when Jews were segmented from European society". Two U.S. Republican politicians attending the air show also criticised the French move. Talking to reporters outside the blacked-out Israeli defence stalls, U.S. Republican Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders described the decision as "pretty absurd", while Republican Senator Katie Britt criticised it as "short-sighted". Meshar Sasson, senior vice president at Elbit Systems, accused France of trying to stymie competition, pointing to a series of contracts that Elbit has won in Europe. "If you cannot beat them in technology, just hide them right? That's what it is because there's no other explanation," he said. Rafael described the French move as "unprecedented, unjustified, and politically motivated". The air show's organiser said in a statement that it was in talks to try to help "the various parties find a favourable outcome to the situation".
