The AEX index in Amsterdam closed 0.6% lower on Friday at 1041.10 points, dragged down by payment provider Adyen, which plunged nearly 9% following a negative US analyst report warning of lost market share and rising competition. Semiconductor giants ASMI, Besi, and ASML also suffered losses of up to 4.3% following global tech declines, while steelmaker ArcelorMittal fell 4.7%. These losses offset gains by consumer giant Unilever, which jumped over 3%, and Heineken, which rose 1.9% amidst shareholder pressure to break with tradition and hire an external CEO to replace Dolf van den Brink. Elsewhere, Air France-KLM dipped 1.2% after a Barclays downgrade, and global oil prices slid by up to 2.6%.

More measures are needed to fix a €19.4 billion funding shortfall facing housing associations, as current government plans only solve the crisis on paper, Housing Minister Elanor Boekholt-O'Sullivan has warned. While the coalition's proposals—including annual funding boosts, higher rents for high earners, and relaxed European rules—theoretically turn the deficit into a surplus, they fail to account for reality. The minister pointed out that the calculations ignore high interest rates driven by the war involving Iran and wrongly assume that wealthy associations will easily subsidise struggling ones, threatening the target of building 30,000 new homes a year and prompting the creation of a new financial advisory committee.

Dutch farmers and growers saw their product prices drop by over 10% in the first quarter of the year compared to last year, driven by a 40% plunge in potato prices due to a bumper harvest and falling global demand for chips. According to Statistics Netherlands (CBS), prices for milk, eggs, fruit, and grains also fell significantly, even as production costs for fertilisers and veterinary fees rose. Although energy costs were initially lower during the quarter, the farming group LTO warned that the subsequent outbreak of war involving Iran has since sent global fuel prices soaring, prompting calls for government support to prevent rising costs from hitting food affordability.

Full EU membership must remain the ultimate goal for candidate states, Prime Minister Rob Jetten insisted ahead of a summit in Montenegro, rejecting French and German proposals for a phased accession process. While Jetten agreed that countries should see the benefits of their reforms sooner, he warned that partial access to the single market could create a two-tier Europe. Working alongside Belgium and Luxembourg, he urged candidate nations to stay focused on the European path rather than turning towards Russia, promising that the Benelux countries will soon release their own plans to improve the joining process.

The Amsterdam AEX index opened lower on Friday, dragged down by a 3 per cent drop for chip giants ASMI, Besi, and ASML following a tech sell-off in the US and Asia. As global investors shift from tech stocks to traditional sectors ahead of the latest US jobs report, wider European markets remained mixed, while Asian tech shares suffered heavy losses. On the local market, paint maker AkzoNobel and builder Heijmans posted gains, but Air France-KLM shares fell after a downgrade by Barclays, and Heineken investors piled pressure on the brewer to appoint an external CEO.

Future DigiD contracts will be restricted strictly to European companies to protect national security, following a decision to block an American takeover of current operator Solvinity over data privacy concerns. State Secretary Eric van der Burg confirmed that under strict security procurement rules, firms from countries with laws allowing government data access—such as the US—will be excluded from the post-2028 tender. In the meantime, the government is introducing stronger data encryption for DigiD and MijnOverheid to better safeguard citizen information.

The Netherlands has joined Sweden's request to bar Russian tourists from the EU. The ''request is justified", said Minister Bart van den Brink (Migration,...

Amazon will invest €10 billion in expanding and modernizing its European logistics network, creating 25,000 new jobs. The company is boosting same‑day delivery capacity with new micro‑distribution centers, while facing rising competition from Chinese rival JD.com.