Economy News in English
Latest economy headlines from Dutch news, translated into English.
Hook of Holland fishmonger prosecuted for refusing woman with face veil
A fishmonger in Hoek van Holland is being prosecuted for discrimination after refusing to serve a woman wearing a face veil. The Court of Appeal in The Hague ruled that the man must stand trial for th...
Jetten: High oil prices prompt countries to tackle shadow fleet
Dutch Minister Rob Jetten stated that rising oil prices are increasing the pressure on nations to crack down on the shadow fleet used by Russia to bypass oil sanctions. Speaking after a meeting with N...
US removes Belarusian state bank and fertilizer companies from sanctions list
The United States has lifted sanctions on several Belarusian companies, including a state bank and major potash producers essential for fertilizer production. These measures, which included import ban...
Heavy damage to homes after Slotermeer ATM bombing: "My son was too scared to go to school"
An ATM explosion at Slotermeerlaan in Amsterdam caused significant damage to residential buildings and injured a teenager early this morning. Local residents reported being in shock from the blast, wh...
Construction of Bolstoren in Nieuw-Vennep halted by enforcement, developer: 'We want to hurry for the buyers'
Construction on the Bolstoren in Nieuw-Vennep, which is being converted into nearly 100 apartments, has been halted by authorities because the environmental permit is not yet finalized. Developer De R...
Judge bans undressing feature in Grok chatbot
A court in Amsterdam has banned the "undressing function" of the Grok chatbot in the Netherlands following a summary judgment. The legal challenge was brought by victim support organizations and safet...
Judge rules Grok may not undress people online with AI software
An Amsterdam court has ruled that the AI chatbot Grok is prohibited from generating and distributing AI-generated 'undressing' images and child pornographic material in the Netherlands. This decision ...
Advisory council links housing construction and circular economy goals
The Dutch Scientific Climate Council (WKR) suggests that transforming, splitting, or adding floors to existing buildings could create tens of thousands of homes while significantly reducing CO2 emissi...
Limburg wants to significantly expand Einstein Telescope test center
The Dutch province of Limburg plans to allocate 4 million euros for research into expanding the ETpathfinder prototype in Maastricht into a world-class research facility for low-frequency gravitationa...
Our cars, clothes and homes must go green faster: 'The time is now'
Greening the economy through the reuse of materials in sectors like housing and transportation is essential to meeting 2050 climate goals. While scientists argue that government intervention is requir...
New-build homes popular among seniors, creating space in the market
Between 2018 and 2024, seniors aged 55 and older purchased more than a quarter of all new-build homes and over half of all new apartments. This trend has helped free up the housing market, as this dem...
Snapchat under fire over grooming and vape sales to minors
The European Commission has launched an investigation into Snapchat to evaluate its compliance with the Digital Services Act's requirements for protecting minors. The probe examines the platform's eff...
Schiphol considers handling assistance for passengers with disabilities itself
Schiphol Airport is considering managing assistance for passengers with disabilities internally instead of outsourcing the service to external firms. This move follows criticism from the FNV trade uni...
Open House Day in Haarlem: 120 homes open for viewing
This Saturday, prospective homebuyers can visit 120 houses in Haarlem without an appointment during the national Open House Day. According to the listing site Funda, an additional 170 properties are a...
Labor dispute looms at Tata Steel. 'False start for the new organization'
Tata Steel management and trade unions have failed to reach an agreement on a new collective bargaining contract before the current one expires on April 1. This dispute coincides with the company's sc...
Geldmaat closes ATMs and limits opening hours after series of ATM bombings
Geldmaat is closing several ATMs and restricting the opening hours of others following a series of six explosive attacks targeting their machines this week. These measures are being implemented to pre...
Iran allows Malaysian oil tankers through Strait of Hormuz
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim announced that Iran has agreed to allow Malaysian oil tankers to pass through the Strait of Hormuz. The decision follows high-level discussions between Ibrahim a...
Regulators investigate if Odido kept customer data too long
The Dutch Data Protection Authority and the Rijksinspectie Digitale Infrastructuur are investigating whether telecom provider Odido retained customer data for longer than permitted. This probe follows...
Brussels intervenes: major porn sites fail to protect children enough
The European Commission has filed charges against major pornographic websites, including Pornhub and Stripchat, for failing to adequately prevent children from accessing their content in violation of ...
Slightly more cans and bottles returned, but still not enough
Verpact reports that while the collection of deposit bottles and cans in the Netherlands is increasing, it still falls short of the 90% legal requirement. The organization acknowledges that reaching t...
More fatal workplace accidents in 2025 than the previous year
The Dutch Labor Inspectorate reported an increase in fatal workplace accidents in 2025, with 59 recorded deaths compared to 52 the previous year. This data indicates a slight rise in work-related fata...
Netherlands comfortably meets old NATO target, handful of countries barely
The Netherlands comfortably met the previous NATO defense spending target by last year's deadline, while several other member states only narrowly succeeded. Following a summit in The Hague, allies ar...
Boekholt on interview: should have chosen words more carefully
Dutch Minister for Housing Elanor Boekholt-O’Sullivan expressed regret over her choice of words during a recent interview with The Guardian regarding peak-hour electricity conservation. Her comments...
Pump prices drop slightly after Monday's peak
Suggested retail prices for gasoline and diesel in the Netherlands have seen a slight decrease following a peak earlier this week. This trend suggests a stabilization in international oil prices, alth...
Budget chain Action to open first US store in late 2027
Budget retail chain Action plans to open its first store in the United States in late 2027 or early 2028. The company aims to expand its presence to 100 locations across the country by the end of 2030...
Study: quality of maternity care under pressure
A study by Dutch health organizations warns that the quality of maternity care is under pressure due to increasing staff shortages. These shortages result in women receiving fewer hours of care than n...
Dutch national debt exceeds 500 billion for the first time
The Dutch national debt and government spending exceeded 500 billion euros for the first time last year. According to Statistics Netherlands (CBS), government expenditures continue to increase steadil...
Paying with smartphone or smartwatch more popular than debit card for the first time
In 2025, mobile and smartwatch payments in the Netherlands became more popular than traditional debit card use for the first time. Nearly 60% of all card-based transactions were cardless, representing...
Another ATM bombing, this time on Slotermeerlaan
An ATM on Slotermeerlaan in Amsterdam Nieuw-West was targeted by an explosion early Thursday morning, marking the latest in a series of similar incidents in the region this week. Police have cordoned ...
Household disposable income rises due to higher wages
In 2025, Dutch households saw an increase in disposable income primarily driven by higher collective labor agreement wages. While employee compensation rose, Statistics Netherlands (CBS) also reported...