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Expectations were low going into the EU’s summit with China in Beijing given that the two-day affair had already been curtailed. In the end, the first in-person meeting between the EU and Chinese leadership since 2003 made little progress in terms of concrete deliverables. Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Council President Antonio Costa pulled no punches on China’s trade practices in their closing press conference, calling out Beijing’s support for Russia amid its invasion of Ukraine, and reiterating their view that the trading relationship is “critically unbalanced.” The two sides did agree on a mechanism to identify supply chain bottlenecks, committed to work on solutions on public procurement and endorsed a joint statement on climate — in one bright spot of unity.

Editor’s Note: Tomorrow’s edition will be the last Brussels Edition before the summer break. We’ll be back in your inbox on September 1st.

— Max Ramsay

What’s Happening

ECB Pause | President Christine Lagarde said the ECB is in a “wait-and-see” mode after leaving interest rates unchanged for the first time in more than a year. Still lacking clarity on the eventual level of tariffs, the ECB offered no future guidance.

Damage Control | Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskiy submitted a new bill in an effort to quell public outrage over his move to curb the independence of the country’s anti-graft agencies. Zelenskiy vowed that the draft would guarantee the independence of these bodies and protect them from Russian interference.

Solar Slowdown | The EU’s string of record-setting solar power deployments is on track to come to an end this year. Demand is waning for rooftop solar panels due to lower wholesale electricity prices and a pullback in government support for the sector.

Autos Angst  | Automakers are calling for Europe to further stimulate demand for electric vehicles after sales of all new cars fell in June by the most in 10 months. Europe’s carmakers can ill afford any slack in demand for EVs in their home market, with key players continuing to lose ground in China amid local competition.

Around Europe

Palestinian State |  French President Emmanuel Macron said his country would recognize Palestinian statehood in September amid growing pressure on Israel over the humanitarian situation in Gaza. The official announcement will be made at the next annual gathering of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, Macron said in a social media post late last night.

Fighter-Jet Spat | Germany and France tasked their defense ministers with providing a solution next month to defuse tensions over a planned joint fighter jet program. Chancellor Friedrich Merz and President Emmanuel Macron discussed the issue over dinner this week as the ambitious weapons system remains mired in conflict.  

New Governor | The Portuguese government named Alvaro Santos Pereira, currently the OECD’s chief  economist, to head the country’s central bank and sit on the ECB’s Governing Council. Pereira replaces Mario Centeno, one of the euro area’s most dovish interest rate-setters, after just one term.

Czech Election | The potential return of billionaire Andrej Babis to power after October’s Czech parliamentary election would bring an increase in infrastructure investments, according to the CEO of one of the country’s banks. Former premier Babis is a close ally of Hungary’s Viktor Orban and supports US President Donald Trump.

Riding High | Deutsche Bank’s shares rose to the highest in a decade after reporting better-than-expected trading results. It’s a further sign that Germany’s largest lender has escaped a downward spiral and continued its recovery under CEO Christian Sewing.

Chart of the Day

Serbia is taking a serious approach to prepare for times of crisis, with the country’s central bank planning to bring all of its roughly $6 billion in gold reserves onto its own soil. It will make Serbia the first eastern European country not to hold any of its bullion in traditional hubs like Switzerland, the UK and the US.

Today’s Agenda

• Commissioner Costas Kadis participates at a youth dialogue on the European Ocean Pact in Cyprus

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