AMSTERDAM (AP) — The Netherlands announced on Tuesday that it was withdrawing from participating in the Eurovision Song Contest over Israel's participation, reversing a decision in September to return to the show.
NPO, the umbrella organization for public broadcasters in the country, announced in September it would send a performer to the glitzy pop gala after a subsidiary had said a month earlier it would boycott the contest for a second year.
In a statement, the organization's director, Jet de Ranitz, said that NPO was unable to secure a broadcaster who would send a Dutch artist. “Due to the sensitivities surrounding the themes currently at play, we have decided to take a step back for the time being,” De Ranitz said.
NPO had planned to return to the 2027 edition as a joint project between a number of the country’s public broadcasters, with the umbrella organization coordinating the selection of the performer, coverage of the event and commentary.
Five longtime participants — Spain, the Netherlands, Ireland, Iceland and Slovenia — boycotted the 2026 edition after organizers declined to kick Israel out over its conduct of the war against Hamas in Gaza and violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.
The decision to return had sparked backlash. Earlier this month, hundreds of NPO employees sent a letter opposing Dutch participation. A number of prominent Dutch media personalities also publicly objected to the move.
“In our coordinating role, we held discussions with the broadcasters to investigate whether there are any broadcasters willing to facilitate the participation of a Dutch artist. In those discussions, we initially felt there was sufficient support to return,” De Ranitz said.
NPO will still broadcast the event.
In May, 35 countries participated in the 2026 edition of the glitter-drenched pop music competition. The contest was won by Bulgarian singer Dara, so next year’s competition will take place in the southeast European country.
The 2026 Eurovision final was watched by 130 million viewers around the world, organizers say, down from 160 million in 2025.
FILE - An Eurovision flag flies at the port of Burgas, on Bulgaria's Black Sea coast, which will host the 71st Eurovision Song Contest in 2027, Friday, Aug. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Valentina Petrova, File)
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Reserve is expected to stand pat on interest rates Wednesday even though inflation has accelerated in the past couple of months as the Iran war has caused spikes in oil and gas prices.
The Fed's latest policy meeting concludes less than a week before the midterm elections, which have focused heavily on concerns about the cost of living and affordability. Consumers have generally soured on an economy weighed down by more expensive gas, groceries, and clothing, among other items.
The Fed, led by Chairman Kevin Warsh, wants to return inflation to its 2% target, which it typically does by raising its short-term interest rate. Higher borrowing costs, over time, can cool spending and slow inflation. The Fed raised its key rate last month for the first time in three years, from about 3.6% to 3.9%, in what many investors and economists perceived was a first step toward a renewed effort to bring down inflation.
Yet Warsh faces a host of challenges in achieving that goal. President Donald Trump slammed the Fed for raising its key rate last month, though he largely blamed the central bank's rate-setting committee, rather than Warsh, whom he appointed. And some of the forces driving inflation — specifically the rapid buildout of artificial intelligence infrastructure and higher energy prices — won't easily be tamed by higher interest rates.
At the same time, other parts of the economy are already being hit by higher rates, which were lifted by market forces, even before the Fed hiked last month. The average 30-year mortgage rate reached a three-year high of 7.4% earlier this month, though it has since slipped a bit. Higher mortgage rates have made buying a home unaffordable for 5 million more Americans since the beginning of the year, according to Oxford Economics, a consulting firm. Over time, Fed rate hikes can make mortgages, auto loans, and credit card borrowing more expensive, adding to Americans' sense that things like homes and cars are getting pricier.
After the Fed announces its rate decision, Warsh will speak at a news conference, where his remarks will be closely watched for hints about the Fed's next steps. He will likely repeat the Fed's desire for a “timelier” return of inflation to the 2% target. Some may view that as a sign the Fed will boost its key rate at its next meeting, in December, a move already widely expected by Wall Street investors.
If the Fed keeps rates on hold, Warsh will be pushed to explain why the central bank hiked in September but not this month. Inflation picked up in September, when consumer prices rose 3.7% compared with a year earlier. The increase was much bigger than the 2.4% rate in February, just before the Iran war.
And on a monthly basis, the consumer price index — the most widely-followed inflation gauge — rose 0.3% in both August and September. At that pace over a full year, inflation would rise much more quickly than the Fed's 2% target.
On Thursday, a separate inflation measure more closely followed by the Fed, the personal consumption expenditures price index, is forecast to have jumped 3.6% in September from a year earlier, up from 3.4% in August. Core prices, which exclude the food and energy categories, are forecast to have risen 3.1%, up from 3% the previous month.
Aditya Bhave, head of U.S. economics at Bank of America, said economists and the Fed have gotten too complacent about above-target inflation. Higher oil and gas prices will likely keep inflation elevated for several more months, he said, and rising diesel costs will elevate shipping prices for nearly every type of good, which could spread inflation more broadly through the economy.
“Unless the Fed takes this problem more seriously and stops essentially making excuses about inflation, I think we're not going to get back to 2% until the next recession,” Bhave said.
Warsh will likely seek to keep the Wednesday press conference relatively short. It was about 30 minutes last month. Warsh's predecessor, Jerome Powell, often held news conferences for about 45 minutes.
The Fed's policy meeting is part of a busy week for central banks around the world. The Bank of Canada will also meet Wednesday and is forecast to lift its key rate a quarter point, to 2.5%. Policymakers at the European Central Bank and the Bank of Japan are both scheduled to meet Thursday and are expected to keep their key rates unchanged.
For Warsh and the Fed, another key consideration is that the U.S. economy is growing at a healthy pace and unemployment remains low, at 4.2%, even if hiring is also sluggish. The government will report Thursday on growth for the July-September quarter, which is expected to reach 3%, according to a forecast by data provider FactSet. That would be up from 2.2% in the April-June quarter.
Many economists argue that solid growth is evidence that interest rates aren't particularly high and the economy could withstand higher rates to combat inflation.
U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh speaks during the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank Group in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Dhitaraht Dhanarahtsombat)
U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh speaks during the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank Group in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Dhitaraht Dhanarahtsombat)
