EU plans to streamline but not change key budget rules

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Commission wants to streamline the European Union's complex rules governing economic policy-making, but won't change the two key laws that sharpened budget policy control during the debt crisis, a top official responsible for the euro zone said.

EU to place efficiency at heart of energy security plans

Brussels could propose tougher energy efficiency targets for member states by September, the EU’s energy chief Gunther Oettinger revealed today.

'Disappointing' trade deficit figures a drag on recovery renewing triple-dip fears

Britain's trade deficit narrowed in November as exports rose more than imports, but the fall was below forecasts, which economists warn will act as a drag on growth and further threatens a triple-dip recession.