The Wall Street Journal-20080213-Politics - Economics- In Brief

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Politics & Economics: In Brief

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German Unions Warn of Strikes

Germany's two largest labor unions are defying calls from the European Central Bank to moderate their wage expectations and are moving ahead with warning strikes. Nearly 2,000 Eastern German steelworkers from the industrial union IG Metall, Germany's biggest union with 2.3 million members, staged a warning strike yesterday for an 8% pay raise at two steel plants. The services sector Ver.di union is also demanding an 8% pay increase for its 2.2 million members, and is threatening to stage warning strikes later this week.

London to Raise Congestion Charge

London's mayor said drivers of high-polluting cars, such as sports utility vehicles and high-powered performance cars, will pay $49 a day to enter central London, triple the current charge. The most fuel efficient vehicles will get a free ride, Mayor Ken Livingstone said. Mr. Livingstone, who introduced the daily congestion charge in 2003, said 17% of cars that visit central London each day will pay the higher charge, while 2% will go free. The remaining 81% will continue to pay the current $16 fee.

France Gets Delay

The French government, under pressure to curb deficit spending to conform with European Union rules, dodged a bullet after its EU peers yielded on the timing of the adjustments. Slovenia's Finance Minister, Andrej Bajuk, whose country holds the EU's rotating presidency, said the 15 EU members that share the euro reaffirmed an April 2007 agreement to balance their budgets by 2010. He added, however, that France should do so "circumstances permitting." The wording reflects a new emphasis on the impact cyclical conditions have on the ability of governments to balance their books.