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

With the latest digital tricks, leather dashboards and champagne coolers — but sometimes at half the price — Chinese automakers are seriously threatening European manufacturers in the luxury-car segment. While it will be difficult to overcome the allure and heritage of Porsche and Mercedes, the draw for Chinese companies is some of the fattest margins in the industry and the challenge is real. Just listen to Ford CEO Jim Farley rave about the Xiaomi SU7 sports car he’s been driving for six months. After making significant inroads in China — tripling market share in the high-end segment in two years — producers led by BYD are taking the fight to Europe as profits and sales slump amid the struggle to pivot to the electric-car era. Meanwhile, the EU is set to slap tariffs on Chinese-made EVs this week as significant gaps remain with Beijing after eight rounds of negotiations to avoid penalties, a step Economy Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni said can’t be called protectionism.

— Lyubov Pronina

Orban Visit | Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban will visit Georgia as early as today following an election which opponents say was rigged. He was quick to congratulate the ruling Georgian Dream party, which claimed victory in the vote. European Council head Charles Michel said he intends to put Georgia on the agenda of the informal meeting of EU leaders in Budapest next month and called for a swift investigation of irregularities.

Losing Ground | Russian troops are continuing to advance in parts of Ukraine, despite record losses. Officials in Kyiv and around Europe are concerned that a victory for Donald Trump could see Ukraine forced into a painful settlement that would allow Vladimir Putin to consolidate his hold on the country’s territory.

Dangerous Precedent | France and Germany are balking at a proposal by the EU’s diplomatic arm aimed at circumventing a Hungarian veto that’s blocking more than €6 billion in military aid for Ukraine. The idea is to allow member states to make voluntary contributions to the European Peace Facility to fund military purchases. Since the fund currently requires unanimity to be tapped, some countries fret about setting a precedent. 

Helping Russia | A second batch of North Korean troops will head to Russia soon, according to South Korean intelligence documents. Amid concerns they’re bound for the frontlines of the war in Ukraine, that would follow some 1,500 elite special forces troops already being trained in Russia’s far east as part of a planned deployment of about 10,000 North Korean soldiers. South Korea is briefing NATO today on the latest developments.

Dinner Dates | ECB President Christine Lagarde has invited policymakers to kick off proceedings earlier in most of the weeks interest-rate decisions are due, we’re told. From January, Governing Council meetings to set borrowing costs will regularly be preceded by a Tuesday night dinner, featuring a high-level guest. The first invitee is expected to be Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. Meanwhile, ECB communications are getting messy with diverging views from policymakers. 

Target Berlin | Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance said Donald Trump would keep the US in NATO if reelected, though it’s important that the military alliance isn’t “just a welfare client.” Vance singled out Germany, Europe’s biggest economy and a frequent target of Trump’s pressure during his presidency.

French Hope | Antoine Armand, France’s youngest-ever finance minister, is tasked with reining in the country’s runaway public finances amid political uncertainty. His challenges are evident, with Moody’s putting the nation’s credit rating on a negative outlook and policymakers across the region telling France to get its fiscal plans in order. The government’s latest idea: crack down on absenteeism in the civil service.

Tighter Rules | Far-right lawmaker Geert Wilders’ Freedom Party and his coalition hammered out a deal that sets the Netherlands on course for a stricter migration policy. The cabinet proposed border controls from the end of November and cracking down on asylum seekers from Syria. It will also do away with permanent asylum permits and ban family reunification for adult children and unmarried partners.

Deadlock Ahead | Prime Minister Boyko Borissov vowed to form a government after winning a snap parliamentary election. Despite the victory, his party fell well short of a majority and has options to end the political stalemate that’s gripped Bulgaria since 2021 are limited.  

Realistic Goal | Montenegro’s ambition to become a member of the EU by 2028 is “reachable,” von der Leyen said over the weekend on the final leg of her western Balkans tour. The former Yugoslav republic recently emerged as the front-runner among six Balkan nations, which are all in various stages of the negotiation process.

Switzerland’s efforts to forge closer links with the EU are going to prove a hard sell with voters, according to a new poll showing that about half are skeptical about the bloc. While the Swiss see economic advantages from access to the bloc’s market, they fear a threat to sovereignty and self-determination. The survey comes as long-running talks between Swiss and EU officials on a revamp of bilateral relations enter their final stretch. The Swiss government is expected to take stock of progress in early November with both sides aiming to conclude by the end of the year.

All times CET

• 12 p.m. NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte gives press statement after meeting a high-level delegation from the South Korea
• 1 p.m. EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell news conference after 9th Union of the Mediterranean Regional Forum in Barcelona
• 3:15 p.m. Commission President von der Leyen holds speech at the College of Europe in Bruges, Belgium
• Justice Commissioner Didier Reynders participates in ECP policy dialog “The Rule of Law beyond the EU Member States”
• EU-Western Balkan Ministerial Forum in Budva, Montenegro

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