Europe Daily News, 26 March 2026

COMPETITION

• Opinion of Advocate General Biondi of 26 March 2026 in Case C-855/24 P, Crown Holdings, Inc., Crown Cork & Seal Deutschland Holdings GmbH Vs. European Commission
  Re: Appeal - Competition - Agreements, decisions and concerted practices - Metal packaging market - Initiation of an investigation procedure by the European Commission at the request of a national competition authority - Regulation (EC) No 1/2003 - Commission Notice on Cooperation within the Network of Competition Authorities - Principle of the protection of legitimate expectations
• Prior notification of a concentration (Case M.12270 - UPM-Kymmene / Sappi / JV)
• Prior notification of a concentration (Case M.12335 - Armira / Invest KG / Aviloo)
• Prior notification of a concentration (Case M.12326 - SFPIM / Lineas)
• Commission clears acquisition of Finco by Glencore (M.12300) - Midday Express
• Commission clears acquisition of the Lindsey Oil Refinery Assets by Phillips 66 (M.12338) - Midday Express
• Italy - Meal vouchers: AGCM launches investigation into Edenred for possible abuse of a dominant position
• Slovenia - SCPA has begun a more detailed assessment of the concentration of the companies Telemach Slovenija d.o.o. and T-2 d.o.o. and calls for the submission of information relevant to the decision
• UK - ABF to sell unit in Northern Ireland to ease concerns over Hovis, UK's CMA says - See the Interim report notice and the Summary

STATE AID

• Judgment of the Court of 26 March 2026, Case C-58/25, Fremoluc NV and Association de Promotion des Droits Humains et des Minorités ASBL Vs. Vlaamse Regering
  Re: Preliminary ruling - State aid - Concept of “aid scheme” - Additional implementing measures - National legislation providing for the adoption of aid schemes intended to facilitate the purchase of real estate - Implementation of that legislation by municipal regulations
• Opinion of Advocate General Kokott of 26 March 2026 in Joined Cases C‑737/23 P to C‑742/23 P Capsugel Belgium (C‑737/23 P), VF Europe BVBA (C‑738/23 P), Belgacom International Carrier Services (C‑739/23 P), Zoetis Belgium (C‑740/23 P), Ineos Aromatics Ltd, formerly BP Aromatics Ltd (C‑741/23 P), Eval Europe NV (C‑742/23 P) Vs. European Commission
  Re: Appeals - State aid - Aid scheme implemented by the Kingdom of Belgium - Tax ruling - Excess profit exemption - Criterion of State-aid control in tax law – Unlawful administrative practice as aid
• Opinion of Advocate General Kokott of 26 March 2026 in Joined Cases C‑736/23 P, ZF CV Systems Europe, formerly Wabco Europe Vs. European Commission
  Re: Appeal - State aid - Aid scheme implemented by the Kingdom of Belgium - Tax ruling - Exemption of excess profits - Standard of review for State aid in tax law - Unlawful administrative practice classified as aid
• Opinion of Advocate General Biondi of 26 March 2026 in Joined Cases C-266/24 P, C-269/24 P and C-289/24 P European Commission Vs. Ryanair DAC (C-266/24 P) and Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij NV Vs. Ryanair DAC, European Commission (C-269/24 P) and Société Air France, Air France-KLM Vs. Ryanair DAC, European Commission (C-289/24 P)
  Re: Appeal - State aid - Aid granted by the Netherlands to KLM in the context of the COVID‑19 pandemic - State guarantee for a bank loan and a subordinated loan by the State - Decision declaring the aid compatible with the internal market - Determination of the beneficiary of the aid in the context of a group of companies
• Authorisation for State aid pursuant to Articles 107 and 108 of the TFEU - Cases where the Commission raises no objections – SA.120985, SA.121337 & SA.122117
• EFTA Surveillance Authority: State aid – Decision to raise no objections
• Commission approves €50 million Spanish regional cleantech State aid scheme (SA.121547) - Midday Express
• Answer given by EVP Ribera to a MEP written question - Follow-up to the Court of Justice of the European Union judgment in Case C-59/23 P (Paks II State aid)

TRADE & CUSTOMS

• Judgment of the Court of 26 March 2026, Case C-307/23, G GmbH Vs. Hauptzollamt H.
  Re: Reference for a preliminary ruling - Customs Union - Regulation (EEC) No 2913/92 - Community Customs Code - Import and export procedures - Determination of customs value - Article 32(1)(a)(ii) and (b)(iv) - Adjustment based on costs incurred by the buyer - Costs arising from intangible services involving the design of label templates affixed to food cans - Concept of “container” - Intangible services performed within the territory of the European Union
• Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/59 of 6 January 2026 establishing a derogation from Article 43(1) of Regulation (EU) 2016/2031 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards the import conditions for introduction into the Union of wood packaging material in the form of ammunition boxes, originating in the United States of America, under the control of the United States Department of Defense, and manufactured before 1 September 2007
• The Council and the European Parliament selected Lille as the host city for the future European Union customs authority (EUCA)
• Commission welcomes selection of Lille as seat for EU Customs Authority
• Report the EU and the five States of Eastern and Southern Africa (ESA5)of the Chief Negotiators’ meeting on the implementing the EPA - 04 to 05 December 2025
• EU US trade deal: MEPs set conditions for lowering tariffs on US products - MEPs adopted their position on two proposals implementing the tariff aspects of the EU-US Turnberry trade deal
• Steel market pressures mount as global capacity reaches new high and trade circumvention accelerates - Statement by OECD Steel Committee
• ‘An existential threat to European steelmaking’: OECD data puts global steel surplus at 650 million tonnes - See Eurofer Statement

INTERNAL MARKET & INDUSTRY

• SAFE approvals unlock defence funding for Czechia and France
• Norway and Iceland join EU's secure satellite networks GOVSATCOM and IRIS²
• Commissioner Kubilius continues ‘missile tour' in Sweden to ramp-up Europe's missile production to support Ukraine and strengthen air missile defence in Europe - Midday Express

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

• Luxury leather goods: the inclusion of a number in a trade mark, evoking a fictitious historical heritage, may be deceptive to consumers (See CPR No.49/2026 - Judgment of the Court in Case C-412/24, Fauré Le Page)

EMPLOYMENT & SOCIAL AFFAIRS

• Parliament backed EU funds (€1.8 million) for 420 workers dismissed after motorcycle manufacturer KTM halted production in April 2025
• Parliament backed €1.9 million EU support for 416 workers who were laid off after home decoration chain Casa went bankrupt.

FINANCE

• New rules to address bank failures protecting taxpayers and depositors

ENVIRONMENT & CLIMATE CHANGE

• Answer given by Ms Zaharieva to a MEP written question - Scientific reliability of EU policies on microplastics
• EFTA Surveillance Authority Decision No 202/25/COL of 10 December 2025 concerning exemptions from the excise duty on waste incineration for undertakings covered by the EU ETS (Norway)
• Commission launches new strategy to tackle rising wildfire threat - QaA & Remarks by EVP Mînzatu and Commissioners Lahbib and Roswall

HEALTH, FOOD & PRODUCT SAFETY

• Judgment of the Court of 26 March 2026 in Case C-338/24, LF Vs. Sanofi Pasteur SA
  Re: Preliminary ruling - Approximation of laws - Liability for defective products - Directive 85/374/EEC - Article 13 – Relationship with the fault-based liability regime - Fault of the producer linked to the defectiveness of the product - Article 10 - Starting point of the three-year limitation period in the case of damage consisting of a progressive disease - Concept of “knowledge of the damage” - Article 11 - Extinction of the victim’s rights - Validity - Article 47 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union - Right of access to a court

DIGITAL & INFORMATION SOCIETY

• Agenda for: Working Party on Telecommunications & Information Society - 26 March 2026
• Investigation by the Commission and consumer authorities find that one in three traders incorrectly display discounts online during Black Friday and Cyber Monday
• Commission preliminarily finds PornHub, Stripchat, XNXX and XVideos in breach of the Digital Services Act for allowing minors to access their services
• Commission investigates Snapchat's compliance with child protection rules under the Digital Services Act
• Artificial Intelligence Act: delayed application, ban on nudifier apps

ECB, EURO & ECONOMY

• €34.6 billion in cohesion policy funds reallocated to address EU's strategic priorities - QaA & Remarks by EVP Mînzatu and Fitto
• Commission greenlights Greece's seventh payment request for €1.18 billion under NextGenerationEU
• Commission greenlights Latvia's fourth payment request for €371 million under NextGenerationEU

AREA OF FREEDOM, SECURITY & JUSTICE

• Parliament adopted new EU-wide rules establishing a harmonised criminal law framework to prevent and combat corruption across the Union.
• Returns regulation: MEPs endorsed the opening of talks with Council on the new legal framework for the return of people without the right to stay in the EU

FUTURE OF EUROPE

• Agenda for: Meeting of the Antici Group (Simplification: Omnibus VII: Digital (AI) & Omnibus X: Food and feed safety) - 01 April 2026
• European Council President António Costa debriefed the EP plenary in Brussels on the discussions held during the European Council meeting of 19 March 2026

EXTERNAL RELATIONS

• Commission scales up its humanitarian response in Lebanon to address urgent needs - Midday Express
• The EU and Nigeria issued a joint communiqué following the 8th EU-Nigeria ministerial meeting on Monday 23 March 2026 in Abuja, Nigeria
• Global Gateway: MEPs deplore lack of transparency and democratic accountability - MEPs have adopted their first report on the EU’s flagship strategic investment initiative, demanding an investigation into the alleged involvement of Chinese companies in projects

EU/RUSSIA/UKRAINE

• War in Ukraine: the Court of Justice confirms the freezing of the funds of five leading businesspersons operating in Russia (See CPR No.48/2026 - Judgment of the Court in Joined Cases C-696/23 P Pumpyanskiy Vs. Council, C-704/23 P Khudaverdyan Vs. Council, C-711/23 P Rashnikov Vs. Council, C-35/24 P Mazepin Vs. Council and C-111/24 P Khan Vs. Council)