Jan Strupczewski

The European Commission aims to limit ​political interference in European Union banking mergers and remove obstacles to cross-border banking within the bloc to allow ‌EU banks to compete more effectively against larger U.S. rivals.

European Union leaders headed for a clash over the bloc's budget ​on Friday after both net contributors and beneficiaries criticised an initial proposal on what the EU should pay for from 2028 to 2034 - ‌and where the money should come from.

The European Union's budget for 2028-2034 should be 2% ​smaller than the 2 trillion euros proposed last year, the Cypriot EU presidency proposed ‌on Thursday, opening months of negotiations on what EU policies should get funding.

The International Monetary Fund cut its growth ‌forecast for the euro zone on Thursday and raised its expectation for inflation because of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, adding that the economic situation could worsen if high energy prices persisted.

The European Commission will delay the introduction of a new market risk capital framework for banks for ​three years to see how the U.S. and Britain ‌implement the same international standards, it said on Thursday.

European automotive, construction, metals, chemicals and transport sectors could lose ​up to 1.3 million jobs ‌this year as a result of a surge in energy prices caused by the U.S.-Iran ​conflict, Labour Commissioner Roxana Minzatu ​said on Wednesday. "Due to the war ⁠in the Middle East, up ​to 1.3 million jobs are at risk ​and we are talking about jobs in energy-intensive industry, particularly," Minzatu told a news ​conference.

The European Commission ​will allow EU governments to use some of the fiscal leeway already granted for higher defence spending, ‌to pay for moving away from fossil fuels to green energy, European Economic Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis said.

Finance ministers from the EU's six biggest ‌economies (E6) agreed among themselves on Friday to support more centralised capital markets supervision, in a breakthrough crucial for deeper integration of Europe's fragmented capital markets.

The European Commission praised Bulgaria's progress in establishing an independent anti-corruption office and said on Thursday the country had to ​keep up its reform momentum to get the remainder of EU funds ‌from the post-pandemic recovery fund by the end-August deadline.

European Union countries will face large bills for defence, energy and pensions ‌in the next 15 years, the International Monetary Fund told EU finance ministers on Saturday, suggesting a mix of reforms, consolidation and joint borrowing as a way to manage that.