Brussels Edition: Helping Banks Help You

(Bloomberg) -- Welcome to the Brussels Edition, Bloomberg’s daily briefing on what matters most in the heart of the European Union.

European banks are in for a fresh round of capital relief — this time from the regulatory machine in Brussels. The Commission is today expected to announce a string of legislative changes that are meant to keep banks lending to households and businesses in the region’s embattled economy. Some of those changes will be aimed at implementing a global agreement announced just weeks ago, others may address specific concerns of the bloc’s lenders. The announcement comes as European banks, which have gotten significant help from the ECB, start to report first-quarter earnings, giving investors an idea of how bad things are. 

What’s Happening

Virus Update | Europe is pushing ahead with steps to relax lockdowns despite concerns that allowing people and businesses to edge toward normality could backfire. Italy is struggling to map a way out, while Portugal may require the use of masks in public spaces. Meanwhile, government bailouts for airlines are taking shape. Here’s the latest.

Shining Example | As the coronavirus continues to kill thousands of people a day across Europe, one country stands out for keeping its death toll low. Here’s what we can learn from the place with the fewest per-capita fatalities in the EU.

Tracing Apps | EU home-affairs ministers will discuss coordinating contact-tracing mobile applications to track the spread of the virus when they meet by video conference today. The bloc, which has floated the possibility of one super-app, is seeking to harmonize the initiatives so tracing can continue even when citizens are allowed to cross borders again.

Energy Response | EU energy ministers are set to discuss how to design a recovery package for the sector so that it creates jobs, strengthens the economy and helps boost investment in clean technologies. Opinions vary, with some urging a green focus and others seeking to use the opportunity to cut dependence on foreign suppliers.

EU Zombies | The pandemic may deal a blow to the EU’s goal of creating European champions. As the bloc opens up the floodgates for state support, countries are at risk of propping up companies that were already in trouble, rather than investing in dynamic new industries. Here’s why.

In Case You Missed It

British Demands | The U.K. called on the EU to show “political movement” if the two sides are to reach a deal that stops the country crashing out of the bloc without a trade agreement. The comments show a growing impatience in Downing Street after the second round of trade negotiations last week made almost no progress.

State Aid | The Commission wants to allow governments to help businesses in need of cash with the riskiest form of debt, potentially putting taxpayers on the hook to take losses if the companies receiving aid go bust. Here’s what the proposed amendment to state-aid rules looks like.

Vaccine Search | A vaccine to halt the pandemic could be available as early as this year, according to an Oslo-based group at the heart of the global development effort. But some experts have called for caution, noting that most vaccines go through years of tests, let alone those made with new technologies that have never proven useful on humans.

Tourism Revival | EU governments are seeking a way to revive the crucial tourism industry this summer without causing new coronavirus infections to spike. It’s still unclear what such a plan could entail, and the projected obliteration of leisure travel this year is poised to hit tourism-dependent Mediterranean economies the hardest. 

Strange Case | The removal of a Red Army statue in Prague was never likely to go unnoticed by Russia. Here are the conspiracy theories it has generated.

Chart of the Day

The number of registered job seekers in France surged at the fastest pace since records began nearly a quarter of a century ago, indicating that the state-funded furlough program won’t be enough to prevent significant damage to the labor market. William Horobin has more details. 

Today’s Agenda

All times CET.

• 9:30 a.m. EU energy ministers will hold an informal video conference on the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic
• 9:30 a.m. Video conference of EU home-affairs ministers to discuss the pandemic response in the area of internal and external borders and the use of tracing applications
• 1:15 p.m. Commission’s Executive Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis holds press conference to present banking package to facilitate lending to households and businesses
• European Parliament’s transport and tourism committee debates with Transport Commissioner Adina-Ioana Valean on the Commission’s response to the Covid-19 crisis
• Justice Commissioner Didier Reynders will hold a video conference call with Google’s chief legal officer
• Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Charles Michel meet the heads of state or government of the G5 Sahel via video conference

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