| Welcome to the Brussels Edition, Bloomberg's daily briefing on what matters most in the heart of the European Union. As EU leaders prepare t |
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| Welcome to the Brussels Edition, Bloomberg's daily briefing on what matters most in the heart of the European Union. As EU leaders prepare to potentially mobilize trillions of euros in additional defense funds, they are finding self-inflicted resistance in the form of banking regulation. The industry has been accustomed to treating arms manufacturers as a reputational liability, thanks to rules designed to weed out high-risk clients or to discourage lending to sectors that clash with ESG metrics. Now defense industry executives, politicians and senior bankers are calling for an urgent revamp of regulations and internal processes to make it easier for banks to quickly channel funds to arms manufacturers and military contractors. — Katharina Rosskopf | |
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| Romanian Ructions | Romania's electoral bureau banned far-right front-runner Calin Georgescu from taking part in May presidential election after receiving more than 1,000 complaints. The ban, which risks provoking the ire of anti-establishment voters and the Trump administration, can still be appealed at the Constitutional Court. His supporters took to the street last night in protest.
Differing Risks | Commission President von der Leyen said that even as "decades-old certainties are crumbling" in Europe's relations with other countries, there's no reason to de-risk the bloc's relationship with the US. "It's a completely different relationship" than with China, she told journalists on Sunday, only hours after billionaire Elon Musk called for an US-departure from NATO.
ECB Options | The European Central Bank should keep all options on the table for its April interest rate decision given the current frequency of hard-to-predict geopolitical shocks, according to Latvian policy maker Martins Kazaks. Uncertainty is "much higher than it has been for quite a long time," he told us in an interview. See what else he said. Nuclear Defense | Poland may seek access to nuclear weapons to face the potential danger of a war with Russia. Donald Tusk is in "serious talks" with France over President's Emmanuel Macron's proposal to use his country's nuclear capabilities to defend European allies. | |
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| Coalition-Building | Germany's conservatives and social democrats are edging closer to forming a government. Chancellor-in-waiting Friedrich Merz said this weekend that the parties agreed on tighter border controls as well as reforms aimed at supporting German industry. While the recent developments show how the country's center is trying to hold, more and more people are supporting fringe parties. Read our look at Germany's shifting political landscape.
Property Backlog | After three years of holding off on sales in the face of higher interest rates and lower values, investors are sitting on a vast pile of unsold property. This estimated $500 billion backlog is raising expectations for a recovery in deal- making as more than 20,000 real estate professionals descend on Cannes for the annual Mipim property conference.
Adviser Switch | Leonardo, the Italian defense and aerospace company, has replaced the bank it hired to advise on talks to forge a new European space and satellite champion, we've been told. The switch from Bank of America to Deutsche Bank may also signal a greater desire by European companies to pare dependence on Wall Street. Here's the background.
Battery Hopeful | Morrow Batteries is poised to begin production of lithium-iron phosphate cells at its factory in southern Norway. After setbacks at Northvolt, Britishvolt and Freyr Battery, Morrow is among a handful of the remaining European manufacturers. Here's what their CEO told us. | |
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| The Trump administration's rapidly changing policies on Europe and Ukraine are boosting support for increased defense spending in France and the UK. An Ipsos poll of 1,000 people for La Tribune Dimanche found that 68% are very supportive or tend to support boosting the defense budget in France, and 66% favor financing it via deficit spending. In the UK, some 44% say such spending should be increased. Learn more. | |
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| All times CET - 4:15 p.m. European Parliament President Roberta Metsola meets von der Leyen in Strasbourg, France
- Euro area finance ministers meet in Brussels
- EU ministers in charge of social policy meet in Brussels
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