| Few had expected Donald Trump to secure such a sweeping US election victory last November, but the day has finally come for his second White House stint. |
| |
| Welcome to the Brussels Edition, Bloomberg's daily briefing on what matters most in the heart of the European Union.
As Donald Trump prepares to be sworn in as president today, Europe's leaders are bracing for the first batch of executive orders and their potential impact on the region. Emboldened populists are riding high off the back of his return, with Germany's far-right AfD the next to test the limits of its support in elections next month. But it's far from a clean sweep. Multi-party systems across the EU incentivize populists to moderate their tone — something Italy's Giorgia Meloni has experienced, while the far-right party in the Netherlands found its chief shut out of the premiership. European leaders will discuss how Trump will transform the continent's future in this year's Davos installment, which kicks off today. — Samuel Stolton | |
| |
| Assertive Sanchez | Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez sought to stamp his authority on the economy with two big moves over the weekend. He's stiffening his stance on property investors by calling for an outright ban on non-EU buyers who aren't residents and replaced Telefonica Chairman Jose Maria Alvarez-Pallete with an executive who served in a previous Socialist administration. China Probe | The EU is considering ditching a trade probe into China's alleged coercive activity targeting Lithuania. The potential move would irk President-elect Trump, who has vowed to take a tough stance on Beijing. Deals Galore | EU and Mexico signed off on a new free trade deal, aiming to boost exports and shore up critical supply lines. The agreement is a boost for both parties ahead of new tariffs expected from the incoming administration in Washington. ECB Cuts | The European Central Bank could continue to lower borrowing costs, according to Executive Board member Isabel Schnabel. The bank has broadly signaled a quarter-point reduction in its next meeting, in two weeks' time. | |
| |
| Lufthansa Deal | After appeasing EU antitrust fears over the deal, Lufthansa finally completed the acquisition of a minority stake in ITA airways. The move will give the ailing Italian carrier a much-needed lifeline. Budget Boost | France's proposal for a slower deficit reduction is within the EU's budget rules, we've been told. In an attempt to stabilize public finances, Francois Bayrou's government aims to bring the deficit within 3% of economic output by 2029. Green Pitch | Robert Habeck, the lead candidate for Germany's Greens in next month's snap election, took his campaign pitch to wealthy and deeply conservative Munich at the weekend, part of a bid to show he's pragmatic and ready to reach out to new voters. Nuclear Boost | Uniper and Sweden's Blykalla are working on a new nuclear test reactor — the Nordic country's first in over 40 years. The project is a sign the government sees nuclear as a viable technology to boost power supplies in the future. | |
| |
| The world's electric-vehicle transition has hit a snag. In Europe, the shift to EVs went into reverse last year as cars with exhaust pipes increased their share of overall sales. From January through November, sales of battery-electric cars and plug-in hybrids were down slightly from a year earlier, with Germany, the continent's biggest market, seeing a 17% plunge, based on data from the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association. | |
| |
| All times CET - 9 a.m. EU antitrust chief Teresa Ribera holds speech at Forum Europa event
- 10 a.m. Commission Vice President Raffaele Fitto and Croatian President Andrej Plenkovic hold speeches at a conference on Croatia's resilience plan in Zagreb
- 1 p.m. Eurozone finance ministers meet in Brussels
- EU Defense Commissioner Andrius Kubilius meets NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte
- EU Council President Antonio Costa and Economy Chief Valdis Dombrovskis meet the European Stability Mechanism's Pierre Gramegna
- EU Foreign Affairs Chief Kaja Kallas and Financial Services Commissioner Maria Luis Albuquerque meet EIB President Nadia Calviño
- World Economic Forum begins in Davos, Switzerland
| |
| |
| |
| You received this message because you are subscribed to Bloomberg's Brussels Edition newsletter. If a friend forwarded you this message, sign up here to get it in your inbox. | | |
No comments:
Post a Comment