Tax incentives for research and development of up to 315%, further incentives for investment in startups by angel investors (private investors who finance small innovative companies), and incentives for patent commercialisation. These measures include, among others, a draft bill by the economic staff aimed at strengthening the ecosystem of innovative and domestic start-ups, whose capitalisation exceeds €8 billion. In addition to the above, incentives are now also given through the golden visa, which is now also being "introduced" to startups. As announced by the Prime Minister, this will now also be granted to those who invest at least 250,000 euros in Greek startups. These are technology companies registered in the national register of start-ups, Elevate Greece, which already has over 800 companies in various sectors (edtech, agrotech, enterprise software, fintech). However, in previous years, when the investment climate was more favourable for high-risk investments, Greek start-ups were on the radar of leading foreign venture capitals. For example, Greek Hack the Box received $55 million in funding from US private equity firm Carlyle Group, while Volos-based Augmenta came under the control of CNH Industrial, the world's second largest tractor manufacturer.Meanwhile, several foreign angel investors have provided capital to Greek startups, with Lars Rasmussen, co-founder of the popular Google Maps app, who hails from Denmark but has been a permanent resident of Greece for the past few years, being a prime example. He has invested in the Greek company Phos Print, which through the technology it has developed is able to print 3D cells, as well as in the Greek biotech company ResQ Biotech

Through tax overcharges on research and development expenditure, which will reach 315%, up from 200% today, a reduced tax for a decade on revenues from patent- protected products and tax credits for investments in start-ups, the government aims to promote the much-needed change in the production model, a model based on the production of innovative, high value-added products, be it food or medical technology applications. At the same time, the government is moving to introduce tax and financial incentives to promote mergers. The fiscal cost of the new measures is estimated at EUR 40 million per year based on existing business activity. The 'lion's share' of the measures announced yesterday is to support, in multiple ways, innovation. Delta Finance Newsletter September 2024

The penetration of organic products in Greek households remains extremely low, as either due to culture or limited income, the annual per capita expenditure for the purchase of products of this category is one of the lowest in the European Union, only 6 euros. At the same time, in Denmark, a country with much less land cultivated organically, the annual per capita expenditure on organic products amounts to EUR 364. It is reasonable to think that the average net wage in Denmark is around EUR 2 800. In Austria, where the annual per capita expenditure on organic food is already EUR 274, the second highest in the EU, a target has been set for 55% of public canteens to have organic food available in public canteens by 2030. A strategy that aims both to strengthen healthy eating and to further promote organic farming. It should be noted that the target set by the EU is to increase the area under organic farming to 25% by 2030. In 2022, about 17 million hectares of land in the EU were cultivated organically, i.e. 10.5% of the total agricultural area in use. It should be noted that Greece and Lithuania are the two EU Member States that have not submitted national plans to the Commission for the development of organic farming. Austria, Poland and Italy have asked farmers to produce outputs from the parcels that received support, for example to harvest the crops on these parcels or to use the grass from these parcels for animal feed. From 2023 in Italy, farmers who sell their production as organic will receive priority Community support.

It took Microsoft not one, not two, not three, but four years to get the first building permit for the main building of its first data center in Greece, which will be built in Spata. The unlikely Greek bureaucracy, personal omissions, the euphoria of officials, but also changes in the management of Microsoft's Greek subsidiary, as well as the pandemic and the "traditional" dead time preceding Greek elections, this time the European elections, are blamed for this long delay, according to market sources. It took the mobilization of the government at the highest level so that in the last quarter, after the reshuffle, the Ministry of Development convened successive meetings of the general secretaries of the relevant ministries and at the same time held a series of meetings with Microsoft's staff, the last one the day before yesterday, Tuesday, in order to unlock the investment. Somehow in early September the Central Administrative Council, the body responsible for approving zoning and environmental conditions, met to issue the crucial EIA. Microsoft has asked the government for help in finding more archaeologists, whom it is expected to compensate, and the Ministry of Culture has responded, while the company expects that help will also be required for the licensing of the cable crossing by the municipalities, as well as for the issue of stormwater infrastructure.

The strong momentum of wind and solar energy in parts of Western Europe and the US has pushed wholesale prices to zero or below zero for many hours a year on the energy exchange, signalling a huge change in the way consumers use "clean sources" of electricity, based on sunshine or wind power. Most people pay a fixed price for each kilowatt-hour of electricity they consume. The price is set by their electricity company and only changes at infrequent intervals, once a week, a month or even just once a year. Van Diesen, a software salesman, recently signed up to receive electricity from two suppliers who charge him the hourly price on the Dutch wholesale energy market, instead of a fixed price that changes on a monthly or annual basis. When the price of electricity drops low enough, smart meters in his home start charging his two electric cars. Wholesale prices change every hour of the day, and even more so as a greater share of electricity flows from wind and solar installations. Because the production costs of wind or solar farms are negligible, market prices are almost zero when there is enough renewable energy available.

It's the end of an era for the iconic Tupperware, the American household plastics company associated with women's empowerment after World War II. The household goods brand that took housewives out of the home, provided them with a source of income and brought A "revolution" in fresh food storage is expected to declare bankruptcy as soon as this week, after a long struggle to get back on its feet amid dwindling demand. It plans to enter court protection after breaching the terms of its debt and recruiting legal and financial advisers, with its shares plunging more than 50% on the news. This followed protracted negotiations between Tupperware and its creditors over how to manage more than $700 million in debt. A temporary "respite" had been provided by the pandemic, which boosted sales as stay-at-home families cooked more and produced more leftovers. When the world 'reopened' the crisis returned. Tupperware products made their debut in 1946 and managed to add their own touch to millions of households around the world. They were inspired by Earl Tupper who invented their flexible airtight seal and introduced the Wonderlier Bowl which is still sold today in various colours and sizes. The now legendary lid on the containers helped keep food from drying out and losing its flavor and aroma in the refrigerator.

Gomez owes her wealth to her businesses, but also to her hundreds of millions of followers on social media. Most of Gomez's fortune comes from Rare Beauty Brands Inc, the makeup company she started five years ago, making a big splash among influencers and young girls. The singer also has partnerships with several brands, acting contracts and a mental health startup, Wondermind. Gomez has made a big splash on social media. She has 424 million followers on the third most popular Instagram account after Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, which means she has a huge audience to promote her own brand and the others she works with. In 2017, for example, she signed a two-year, $30 million contract with Puma. In 2016 she signed a $10 million deal with Coach, and her $10 million contract with Louis Vuitton is also worth $10 million.

In 2021, a frost destroyed entire crops in Brazil, the largest producer of Arabica coffee beans. As a result, the resulting market shortage forced buyers to turn to other countries, such as Vietnam, which produces Robusta beans in particular. Vietnam, however, experienced the worst drought in about ten years, leading farmers to seek more profitable opportunities than coffee, which they found in the stinky yellow durian fruit. The fruit has been banned from public transport in Thailand, Japan, Singapore and Hong Kong because of its smell, but is becoming increasingly popular in the Chinese market. As a result, more and more farmers in Vietnam are deciding to stop producing coffee and try their luck with durian. Typically, the share of Vietnamese durian in the Chinese market almost doubled between 2023 and 2024 and some estimate that this production is five times more profitable than coffee. The challenges posed to the global coffee industry by climate change are expected to continue in the long term.

One of the reasons is that the technology sector is not labour-intensive, like the industries that in the past decades boosted the Chinese economy and the living standards of the Chinese people. China has invested staggering amounts of capital in a sector that does not provide enough jobs. The fact that China is unable to provide sufficient jobs for the approximately 12 million university graduates and the millions who drop out of school to enter the labour market can be attributed to some extent to the pandemic, the anaemic recovery and the trade war with the West. Above all, however, the most decisive factor was the attack launched by Chinese President Xi Jinping on technology companies, on private educational institutions and on the property market in 2020 and 2021. At the time, the vital technology sector suffered a debacle, as President Xi's reform measures were directly targeted at it, the country's tech giants lost tens of millions in market value, and the real estate sector collapsed.

Two microprocessor giants, Taiwan's TSMC and South Korean Samsung, are planning to join forces to jointly build a giant cluster of modules in the United Arab Emirates, which they hope will become a centre for high-tech and artificial intelligence. Under the terms of the agreement, the project will be financed by the Arab Emirates, with Abu Dhabi's sovereign wealth fund, known as Mubadala, playing a central role. It is one of the largest sovereign wealth funds in the world in terms of its wealth and investment portfolio, estimated at around $300 billion, with assets of $1 trillion.