ECB Stimulus Eyed, China Self-Reliance. U.K.-Japan Deal: Eco Day

(Bloomberg) -- Welcome to Friday, Europe. Here’s the latest news and analysis from Bloomberg Economics to help take you through to the weekend.

• Surging coronavirus infections and renewed lockdowns will prompt the European Central Bank to step up monetary stimulus later this year, according to economists surveyed by Bloomberg
• China’s top policy makers meet next week to hammer out an economic blueprint that should offer clues on how the leadership plans to pivot to greater self-sufficiency
• The Swiss National Bank could be forced to sell some of its U.S. stock portfolio -- worth more than $100 billion -- as part of a campaign to ban it from investing in defense companies
• House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said she and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin are “just about there” on resolving a key piece of a U.S. coronavirus relief package
• The U.K. signed a trade deal with Japan, its first with a major economy since Brexit
• Overseas borrowers have flocked to the dollar at a record pace this year, with sovereigns from Indonesia to Colombia and companies from Nissan Motor Co. to Manila’s water utility racking up bond sales of $1.29 trillion
• The Riksbank governor, Stefan Ingves, fears the economic outlook is deteriorating amid signs the coronavirus pandemic is tightening its grip across Europe, and ensnaring Sweden again too
• U.K. consumer confidence dipped by the most since April on greater worries about personal finances and the economy, according to a survey by GfK
• The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits fell for the third time in four weeks, suggesting the labor market is still gradually recovering

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