Europe top stories: weekly summary

LONDON (ICIS)–Here are some of the top stories from ICIS Europe for the week ended 25 September 2020.

Europe consumer confidence falters as second wave hits hard
Despite the International Monetary Fund (IMF) asserting this week that investors and consumers’ faltering confidence may be premature given a better-than-expected outlook, the pandemic’s second wave is hitting Europe hard.

Europe TiO2 industry braces for further change in 2021
The European TiO2 industry is braced for further change in 2021 as several challenges loom large, together with the pandemic-induced downturn: a potential no-deal Brexit and tighter EU regulations are also on the cards.

Total to produce sugar-based PLA at Grandpuits, to quit crude refining in Q1
Total will quit processing crude oil at its Grandpuits refinery and convert it into a ‘zero-crude platform’ for the production of sugar-based polylactic acid (PLA) and biofuels, the French energy and petrochemicals major said on Thursday.

Eurozone business activity stalls, manufacturing picks up steam
The eurozone’s business sector stagnated in September as a struggling services sector outweighed a recovery in the region’s manufacturing industry, according to the latest data released on Wednesday.

BASF to cut up to 2,000 jobs in global business services unit
BASF expects to reduce the headcount in its Global Business Services unit by up to 2,000 worldwide by the end of 2022.

German economy to reach pre-pandemic levels by Q4 2021 on industrial pick-up
Germany’s economy is on track to recover pre-pandemic levels by the fourth quarter of 2021 as industrial activity is set to bounce back strongly, research institute Ifo said on Tuesday.

Europe stocks down as economy set to take hit from renewed restrictions
European stock markets fell sharply on Monday due to growing fears that rising coronavirus infection rates will force limitations to economic activity in coming weeks.