How can we ensure that multinational corporations in the digital sector are taxed appropriately? This question was addressed by German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz and his fellow finance ministers at the Eurogroup and informal ECOFIN meetings in Vienna on 7–8 September 2018. The discussions focused on the search for a smart, swift solution. Other topics on the agenda included reform of the currency union and the completion of the banking union.

The presidency of the Council of the EU rotates among the member states every six months. In July 2018, Austria took up the presidency as scheduled, presenting its programme to the EU finance ministers at the ECOFIN meeting in Brussels on 13 July. For the Eurogroup meeting on 12 July, items on the agenda included further steps to develop the monetary union, as well as an analysis of the euro area’s current economic and budgetary situation.

The analysis of the European Union’s latest Ageing Report provided in the Finance Ministry’s June 2018 monthly report shows that the long-term sustainability of public finances in the EU member states continues to face major challenges as a result of demographic change. Germany is disproportionately affected by increases in age-related spending.