| Meloni's still waiting for her Trump bump |
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| Welcome to the Brussels Edition, Bloomberg's daily briefing on what matters most in the heart of the European Union. Donald Trump was supposed to be good for Giorgia Meloni. Yet despite being the only European leader to attend the US president's inauguration, the Italian prime minister doesn't have much to show for her connections, or her close ties to Elon Musk. The country's carmakers weren't spared from Trump's auto tariffs, nor is Italy likely to get any break from the more sweeping fusillade he's promised for Wednesday. And she still doesn't have a White House visit on the calendar. With her coalition starting to wobble, Meloni will have some tough choices ahead. Behind the scenes, we're told, she's increasingly worried about Trump's behavior. Even so, Meloni will keep trying to put herself forward as a bridge between Washington and Europe — unless that simply becomes untenable. — Kevin Whitelaw | |
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| Testing Trump | Trump said he's "pissed off" at Vladimir Putin's recent steps toward Ukraine and threatened "secondary tariffs" on oil if he thinks the Russian leader is blocking a peace deal. For its part, Russia is testing how far Trump is willing to go in pressing Europe to ease sanctions as part of peace talks over Ukraine, we're told. Tough Deal | Ukraine wants the US to make changes to the economic deal that Trump wants Kyiv to accept as part of ceasefire negotiations, we're told. The draft plan would give the US control over all major future infrastructure and mineral investments, which could conflict with Ukraine's EU accession ambitions. Ukraine sees early signs that Washington may be open to discussing changes. Gas Challenge | Europe's gas sector made it through the winter but the real test comes in the next few months during the refilling season. A cold winter meant higher usage, and cuts to the remaining Russian gas flows through Ukraine tightened supplies further. Now, summer gas prices look persistently higher than those for next winter, which removes the financial incentive for storage trades. New Froth | For years, investors in stocks had little reason to look beyond the US, where soaring tech giants and relentless economic strength fueled an era of market dominance. But doubts have grown around the US exceptionalism trade due to uncertainty from Trump's tariff policies and government job cuts — and Europe is emerging as a beneficiary. | |
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| Judgment Day | Marine Le Pen, leader of the France's far-right National Rally party, will find out today whether she'll be banned from running for president in 2027 as Paris judges rule on an embezzlement case that's put her political future in jeopardy. If prosecutors get their way, she wouldn't get the chance to have her sentence put on hold while challenging the verdict. Arctic Flashpoint | Greenland's traditional dog-sledding championship is taking on added cultural and political importance in the Trump era. After backlash over his wife's plans to attend the race, Vice President JD Vance ended up visiting a US military base on the island, triggering complaints from Denmark. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen now plans to visit Greenland this week. No Arrest | Hungary is planning to host Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu this week, despite an arrest warrant against him by the International Criminal Court. Viktor Orban has called the warrant "shameful." In theory, Hungary is obligated to arrest Netanyahu, but there's nothing other EU countries can do to force Budapest to comply. Wasted Wine | European wineries have been rushing to ship bottles to the US before any of Trump's threatened tariffs hit. But they say orders are already drying up from top customer abroad, meaning more of this year's Merlot and Chardonnay could end up stuffed in cellars. Some of the wine might even need to be distilled into hand sanitizer. | |
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| Anti-American sentiment is rising in Europe as Trump's policies ruffle feathers and prompts boycott campaigns. There's currently no country in Europe where more than half of the population has a positive attitude toward the US, according to a recent YouGov poll. Opinion soured the most in Denmark. | |
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| All times CET - 9:15 a.m. Council President Antonio Costa speaks at "SOS Ocean!" International Conference in Paris
- 12:15 p.m. EU foreign affairs chief Kaja Kallas speaks to reporters ahead of Weimar+ meeting in Madrid
- 4:15 p.m. Commission President Ursula von der Leyen meets European Parliament President Roberta Metsola
- 7 p.m. Economy Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis speaks at EU parliament finance committee meeting on fiscal rules and defense spending in Strasbourg
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