Tensions between the European Union and China are simmering ahead of a key summit, with the two economic giants scrapping over trade and security. Beijing is flooding global markets with subsidized goods to wipe out competitors, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said today. She demanded Beijing correct market distortions that have shut down entire European industries.

The flare-up follows Chinese retaliatory measures targeting EU medical device makers. Friction between Beijing and Brussels has grown in recent months, fueled by issues including China’s stricter control over rare earths that has affected European businesses. In a sign of strain, the Chinese government intended to shorten a two-day summit with EU leaders this month to just a day.

And the relationship could become even more fraught.

Documents we reviewed offer unprecedented insight into how Moscow has been capitalizing on its friendly ties with Beijing to skirt Western sanctions and acquire the know-how and capability to build drones to attack Ukraine. They lay out in detail a previously unreported case study of Russian-Chinese corporate collaboration on defense technology. With the EU all in on helping Ukraine defend itself, the depth of Beijing’s assistance to Russia may prompt even deeper questioning over whether the bloc’s China strategy is working. --Jonathan Tirone

What You Need to Know Today

Former UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has a new job. Goldman Sachs said today that Sunak has rejoined the firm as an adviser. Sunak, who served as prime minister from October 2022 to July 2024, will work with leaders across New York-based Goldman to advise clients globally on a range of topics, “sharing his unique perspectives and insights on the macroeconomic and geopolitical landscape,” Goldman CEO David Solomon said. 

Rishi Sunak  Photographer: Chris J. Ratcliffe/Bloomberg

Italy drew a rebuke from the EU over the harsh conditions it imposed on UniCredit’s takeover of Banco BPM, setting up a power struggle over deal’s fate. Regulators are preparing a letter telling the government in Rome it had no right to weigh in on UniCredit’s planned acquisition, insiders told us. The European Commission will say that under the bloc’s merger rules only Brussels has the legal powers to impose conditions on the deal — which won EU approval last month.

JPMorgan’s desk shortage — triggered by the bank’s strict return-to-the office mandate — is being addressed in the Netherlands. To coincide with its expansion in the region, Wall Street’s biggest lender is moving into Amsterdam’s World Trade Center. As businesses ditch pandemic-era flexible work policies, many are also confronting a paucity of real estate to accommodate all the staff heading back to office.

Travelers at Amsterdam Central railway station Photographer: Ksenia Kuleshova/Bloomberg

Coal power has drawn some $385 billion from global banks over the last three years. Continued reliance on the dirtiest fuel shows how governments are lagging on their commitments to reduce CO2 emissions. After an initial flurry of action to pare back their financing, some banks have relaxed their coal restrictions.

Night-vision contacts are drawing the eyes of investors. A Dubai-based startup founded by a Russian and a Ukrainian raised $250 million to develop smart contact lenses that provide night vision, zoom capabilities and real-time health checks. The Middle East continues to defy the broader slowdown in venture capital fundraising. Startups in the region raised $678 million in the first quarter.

Russia’s locking up demographic data. President Vladimir Putin has made reversing a decline in the population a priority. But gauging progress is complicated by the authorities’ control over the flow of information, including about casualties from the the Kremlin’s war with Ukraine, now well into its fourth year.

A surveillance at Alexander Gardens near the Kremlin  Photographer: Andrey Rudakov/Bloomberg

Blackrock prefers European bonds to Treasuries because their yields are more attractive than US debt. The strategists see sticky inflation keeping the Federal Reserve from cutting rates far. They also said high fiscal deficits may prompt investors to seek more compensation to hold long-term Treasuries. Treasuries sold off over the past week after posting their best monthly performance since February last month.

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For Your Commute

Even in New York, the city with arguably the planet’s most diverse and dynamic food scene, the three days of the Summer Fancy Food Show stand out as a world-class pileup of cuisines and trends. African honeys endorsed by Jane Goodall, Indian spiced sodas, Dubai chocolates and protein-packed … everything but a few of the thousands of products were laid out to tempt buyers and distributors for grocery and gourmet stores.