Germany will cut a power surcharge levied on consumers to support renewable energy by 42.7% to help households cope with soaring energy prices, network operators said on Friday, Reuters reported. Germany and other governments in Europe are seeking to provide relief for consumers as gas prices skyrocket. The reduction in the German levy, to 3.723 euro cents per kilowatt hour (kWh), confirms a Reuters report on Thursday. It will not take effect until Jan. 1. read more The government will help fund the cut with 3.25 billion euros ($3.77 billion) in revenue collected from carbon taxes.

Britain will issue up to 800 temporary visas to foreign butchers in an effort to alleviate a labor shortage in the pork industry that has already led to the culling of some 6,000 healthy pigs, the Washington Post reported. The stopgap measure was crafted in response to “a unique range of pressures on the pig sector over recent months,” said George Eustice, a British minister in charge of food, in a statement. Among the causes he mentioned were the disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic and import restrictions China has placed on British suppliers.

A prolonged increase in energy prices could have a negative impact on Italy’s local administrations forcing the government to step in to help keep offices, hospitals and schools functioning properly, Finance Ministry Undersecretary Maria Cecilia Guerra said, Bloomberg News reported. “I think it would be useful to look at the impact on local administrations because the increase in energy costs could be hard on them,” Guerra said in an interview in Rome.

European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde warned that the globalized nature of the euro area’s economy makes it highly vulnerable to systemic shocks from supply chain disruptions, Bloomberg News reported. “There are signs that the global economy could increasingly be a source of shocks for Europe rather than a stabilizer against volatility,” Lagarde said. Bottlenecks affect the “euro area more than other economies by virtue of our exposure to globalization,” she said.

Otima Energie, a small German power and gas retail company, on Wednesday declared itself insolvent, the latest victim of soaring energy prices, while E.ON, Entega and EnBW temporarily withdrew their gas deals from price comparison portal Verivox. Suppliers across Europe are struggling with rocketing prices due to factors ranging from insatiable Asian demand to Europe's carbon policy and a period of lighter winds.

Alitalia, a one-time symbol of Italian style and glamour brought low by economic mismanagement, will operate its last flight on Thursday after 75 years, before handing over to its downsized successor Italia Trasporto Aereo (ITA), Reuters reported. The traditional choice of popes, prima donnas and Italy's political elite, Alitalia has been run by state-appointed administrators since 2017 to avoid being liquidated.

Two of the Bank of England’s policy makers signaled they’re in no rush to raise interest rates, the first signs of a push back against market expectations for a move by the end of the year, Bloomberg News reported. Catherine Mann said she “can wait” before raising rates because markets have already tightened financial conditions. That was hours after Silvana Tenreyro, considered to be one the BOE’s most dovish policy makers, warned against a “self-defeating” hike to contain temporary inflation pressures.

Britain said that Brexit minister David Frost would meet with European Commission vice-president Maros Sefcovic in Brussels on Friday to see if a "substantial gap" between the two sides over the transit of goods to Northern Ireland can be bridged, Reuters reported. A British government spokesperson welcomed the "considerable effort" made by the EU to address issues with the so-called Northern Ireland Protocol but said "a substantial gap" remained between the two sides. "Both we and the EU now have proposals on the table.

U.K. disposable incomes are set for their biggest drop in a decade next year as rising inflation, tax hikes and tighter monetary and fiscal policy put the squeeze on consumers, according to Credit Suisse, Bloomberg News reported. The bank predicts a 1.5% drop in real disposable incomes in 2022, the biggest fall since the aftermath of the financial crisis in 2011. That will in turn damage the prospects for economic growth, analysts including Sonali Punhani wrote in a note. The forecast is the latest sign of concerns around a looming crunch in the U.K.