Ireland’s manufacturing output fell sharply in April, a new sign that the eurozone economy is slowing after a strong start to the year as U.S. businesses stockpiled goods ahead of expected tariff increases, the Wall Street Journal reported. Factory production was 13.7% lower than in March, with the decline concentrated in what the Irish statistics agency calls the “modern” sector, which is largely comprised of the local operations of U.S. technology and pharmaceutical businesses.

The U.K.’s labor market cooled in the three months to April, offering reassurance to Bank of England policymakers despite the level still being well above that required to return inflation to target any time soon, the Wall Street Journal reported. Average weekly earnings excluding bonuses rose 5.2% from a year earlier, down from 5.5% in the three months to March, the Office for National Statistics said Tuesday. The unemployment rate climbed to 4.6% in the period from 4.4% in the prior quarter, the highest since May-July 2021.

A Northolt woman who invented a business to get a £50,000 Covid Bounce Back Loan backed by the government has been sentenced for fraud, BBC.com reported. Jagoda Rubaszko made up administrative service company which she falsely claimed had a turnover of £210,000. She then paid the loan into five separate bank accounts in Poland over a two-month period. Rubaszko was sentenced to 18 months' imprisonment, suspended for 21 months, for fraud by misrepresentation at Isleworth Crown Court on 5 June. Read more.

The European Commission has proposed an 18th package of sanctions against Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, aimed at Moscow's energy revenues, its banks and its military industry, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Tuesday, Reuters reported. The new package proposes banning transactions with Russia's Nord Stream gas pipelines, as well as banks that engage in sanctions circumvention.

The U.K.'s Insolvency Service, responsible for returning assets to creditors in bankruptcy cases, said it appointed its first crypto intelligence specialist to help trace cryptocurrencies as digital assets become more widespread, CoinDesk.com reported. Former police investigator Andrew Small will take on the role at the government agency, and will primarily focus on criminal cases, the service said. In the past five years the number of cases that have identified crypto as an asset that can be recovered by liquidators rose by 420% to 59.

Romania's sole flat steel producer and among the few still operational in Europe, Liberty Galati (part of GFG Alliance's Liberty Steel Group), announced it resumed activity on June 4 after idling for an entire year amid adverse market conditions, Romania-Insider.com reported. Over the past year and a half, the company received EUR 292 million in government-guaranteed loans from state-owned bank Eximbank but failed to reach break-even production amid a weak market last year. The company ties its hope for settling its mounting debts to the state's stimulus for the defense industry.

Italian teams Brescia and SPAL have declared bankruptcy and will not participate in the next Serie C season, CNA.al reported. Brescia, after 114 years of history, failed to repay part of its debts, which amounted to around 9 million euros. It was forced to liquidate, after losing the right to compete in professional championships. SPAL is also in the same situation, declaring bankruptcy after investors withdrew. The club had received a -4 point penalty for financial irregularities, which contributed to its relegation from Serie B.

Ireland’s manufacturing output fell sharply in April, a new sign that the eurozone economy is slowing after a strong start to the year as U.S. businesses stockpiled goods ahead of expected tariff increases, the Wall Street Journal reported. Factory production was 13.7% lower than in March, with the decline concentrated in what the Irish statistics agency calls the “modern” sector, which is largely comprised of the local operations of U.S. technology and pharmaceutical businesses.

Administrators are on standby to handle the collapse of the UK arm of Builder.ai, a Microsoft-backed start-up which has filed for bankruptcy protection in the U.S. Sky News has learnt that Alvarez & Marsal has been lined up to oversee the insolvency of Builder.ai's UK entities. News of the impending appointment comes days after Builder.ai, which was founded by Sachin Dev Duggal, collapsed in the U.S. Mr Duggal stepped down earlier this year.