Europe Daily News, 12 June 2025

COMPETITION

• Opinion of advocate General Szpunar of 12 June 2025 in Case C‑286/24, Meliá Hotels International, S.A. Vs. Associação Ius Omnibus
  Re: Reference for a preliminary ruling - Actions for damages under national law for infringements of the competition law provisions of the Member States and of the EU - Special action for the disclosure of documents - Plausibility of the claim of damage - Adverse effect on the interests of consumers residing in Portugal - Exercise of the right to bring an actio popularis
• Prior notification of a concentration (Case M.12019 - APG / Macquarie / Skynrg)
• Prior notification of a concentration (Case M.11874 - Frasers / XXL)
• Non-opposition to a notified concentration (Case M.11684 - Midea / Teka)
• Commission clears acquisition of IDL Polska by S.A.E.M.E and IDL (M.11918) - Midday Express
• Commission clears acquisition of Spenn by Reitan Retail, Norwegian Reward, and Strawberry Club (M.12008) - Midday Express
• Summary of Commission Decision of 23 April 2025 relating to a decision pursuant to Article 29(7) of Regulation (EU) 2022/1925 (Case DMA.100185 - Apple - Operating systems - iOS - Art. 6(3))
• Answer given by EVP Ribera to a MEP written question - Possible merger of coal companies receiving state aid
• Germany - Bundeskartellamt prohibits takeover of Vion slaughterhouses by Tönnies

STATE AID

• Authorisation for State aid pursuant to Articles 107 and 108 of the TFEU - Cases where the Commission raises no objections – SA.116353 & SA.117255

TRADE & CUSTOMS

• Trade: Coreper endorses the Council’s negotiating position on FDI screening revision
• Trade: EU adopts new tariffs on Russian and Belarusian agricultural goods and fertilisers
  
• Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/1151 of 11 June 2025 imposing a definitive anti-dumping duty on imports of vanillin originating in the People’s Republic of China
• Working Documents - Expert Group Meeting on Trade and Sustainable Development - 27 March 2025
  - Implementation of TSD Chapters in EU FTAs - Update
  - EU negotiations of TSD Chapters - Update
• Joint Minutes of the 12th Korea-EU Trade Committee - 10 March 2025
• Trump to enact key parts of US-UK trade deal within days - Elements of agreement covering car exports to America and beef and ethanol into UK will come into force - Financial Times
• BYD brings EV price wars to small cars in Europe - EU tariffs may limit discounting but Chinese carmakers will appeal to consumers with advanced technology - Financial Times
• How China beat Trump before the trade battle even started - Beijing has used rare earth controls to win the first skirmishes in the war over commerce - Financial Times

RARE EARTH

• Commission Decision (EU) 2025/1174 of 4 June 2025 recognising certain critical raw material projects located in third countries and in overseas countries or territories as Strategic Projects under Regulation (EU) 2024/1252 of the European Parliament and of the Council
• China demands sensitive information for rare earth exports, companies warn - Extensive licensing requirements raise concerns about intellectual property theft - Financial Times

INTERNAL MARKET & INDUSTRY

• Commissioner Kubilius in Prague for high-level meetings and GLOBSEC - Midday Express
• Galileo Programme: the judgment of the General Court dismissing OHB System’s action against the award of the contract for transition satellites is set aside  (See CPR Nº 69/2025 - Opinion of the Advocate General in the Case C-679/23 P WS and Others Vs. Frontex)

FINANCE

• Financial markets: Council approves decision to maintain certain bank liquidity rule
• Commission proposes to postpone by one additional year the market risk prudential requirements under Basel III
• Commission advances work towards a consolidated EU trading landscape for financial instruments - Midday Express
• EU insolvency law: member states agree position on bringing national insolvency standards closer - Statement by Belgium, France and Portugal  & Spain
• ESMA provides advice and recommendations to streamline prospectuses

TAXATION

• Judgment of the Court of 12 June 2025 in Case C-125/24, [Palmstråle] (i), AA Vs. Allmänna ombudet hos Tullverket
  Re: Reference for a preliminary ruling - Taxation - Common system of VAT - Directive 2006/112/EC - Exemption from VAT - Article 143(1), (e) - Reimportation of goods - Condition relating to the exemption from import duties of returned goods - Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 - Article 86(6) and Article 203 - Incurrence of a customs debt as a result of failure to comply with a formal obligation laid down by customs legislation - Case in which such a debt is incurred

ENERGY

• Meeting of the TTE (Energy) Council on 16 June 2025
  - EU-wide assessment of the final National Energy and Climate Plans - Information from the Commission
  - Call for including protection and resilience of critical energy infrastructure among the key priorities shaping the next MFF - Information from Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania
  - EU-wide assessment of the final national energy and climate plans - Information from the Commission
  - Report on the MED9 Meeting of Energy and Environment Ministers (Portorož, 1 and 2 June 2025) - Information from Slovenia
  - Challenges in the implementation of Regulation (EU) 2024/1787 on the reduction of methane emissions in the energy sector – Recommendations for inclusion in the simplification agenda - Information from Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Greece, Hungary, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia
• Answer given by Mr Jørgensen to a MEP written question - Average calculation for biomass, ‘spoiled’ edible oils from China and grass as a climate and aquatic environment
• European Union celebrates commitment to Tanzania’s clean energy future with new I’ve Got the Power campaign

ENVIRONMENT & CLIMATE CHANGE

• Meeting of the Council (Environment) on 17 June 2025
  - The proposed ban on lead in ammunition and fishing tackle under the REACH Regulation - Information from Czechia, Lithuania and Slovakia
  - Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on circularity requirements for vehicle design and on management of end-of-life vehicles, amending Regulations (EU) 2018/858 and 2019/1020 and repealing Directives 2000/53/EC and 2005/64/EC - General approach for the meeting of Environment Council on 17 June 2025
• Commissioner Roswall hosts EU-China Environment Policy Dialogue to discuss the Global Plastics Treaty, biodiversity, pollution, and multilateral cooperation - Midday Express

HEALTH, FOOD & PRODUCT SAFETY

• The Council formally adopts a decision granting Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova equivalence with EU requirements for field inspections and seed production standards
• Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the safety of toys and repealing Directive 2009/48/EC - Analysis of the final compromise text with a view to agreement as approved by the Coreper on 11 June 2025
• Opinion of Advocate General Emiliou of 12 June 2025 in Case C‑731/23 P, Nicoventures Trading Ltd, British American Tobacco (Germany) GmbH, British American Tobacco Italia SpA (BAT Italia), British American Tobacco Polska Trading sp. z o.o., British American Tobacco España SA, P.J. Carroll & Company Ltd Vs. European Commission
  Re: Appeal - Public Health - Directive 2014/40/EU - Delegated Directive (EU) 2022/2100 - Heated tobacco products - Article 263 TFEU - Standing - Individual concern - Plaumann case-law - Systematisation and reconsideration of the case-law - Closed-group test

AREA OF FREEDOM, SECURITY & JUSTICE

• Advocate General Ćapeta: Return Operations - the General Court erred in its assessment of the causal link in an action for damages brought by a Syrian family against Frontex (See CPR Nº 68/2025 - Judgment of the Court of Justice in Case C-415/23 P, OHB System Vs. Commission)
• 4102nd meeting of the Council of the European Union (Justice & Home Affairs) - 12 June 2025
  - Council conclusions on combating trafficking of weapons and fighting threats stemming from firearms and pyrotechnic articles 
  - Council conclusions on countering chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear and explosive (CBRN-E) risks at mass events, in particular mass sport events
  - Council conclusions on combating trafficking in human beings, with particular attention to the situation related to Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and the protection of minors
• Commission proposes agreements on transfer of passenger name records data with Norway and Iceland - Midday Express
• EU allocates €145.5 million to boost European cybersecurity, including for hospitals and healthcare providers - Midday Express
• Executive Vice-President Virkkunen and Commissioner Brunner attend celebration of 40 years of Schengen in Luxembourg - Midday Express

ECB, EURO & ECONOMY

• Changing for the better? Assessing changes to national RRF plans - See the EP Briefing
• ECB adds indicator of nature loss in climate-related financial disclosures as portfolio emissions continue to decline
• Speech by Isabel Schnabel: Monetary policy and economic growth in a more fragmented world
• Climate-related financial disclosures of Eurosystem: assets held for monetary policy purposes and of the ECB’s foreign reserves
• Climate-related financial disclosures of the ECB’s non-monetary policy portfolios

EXTERNAL RELATIONS

• EU addressing military mobility challenges
• Colombia: Joint Press Release on negotiations on a Partnership and Cooperation Agreement
• Belarus: The fifth meeting of the of the Consultative Group with democratic forces and civil society held in Brussels

UK/EU RELATIONS

• Joint statement on the negotiations for an EU-UK Agreement in respect of Gibraltar
• Remarks by Commissioner Šefčovič at the press conference following the negotiations for an EU-UK Agreement in respect of Gibraltar