EU Economy Boss Signals Shift on ESG Rules Amid Backlash

Welcome to the Brussels Edition. I’m Suzanne Lynch, Bloomberg’s Brussels bureau chief, bringing you the latest from the EU each weekday. Make sure you’re signed up.

Talk to anyone in Brussels about Europe’s economy and you’ll hear the same refrain: Europe has a competitiveness problem. But how to avoid the threat of what former European Central Bank chief Mario Draghi memorably dubbed the “slow agony” of European decline is another matter.

One area where the EU has shown its willingness to reverse course is in the field of regulation. In an interview with Bloomberg Radio, EU Economy Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis signaled the EU’s willingness to accommodate concerns about its environmental, social and governance rules, amid a growing backlash from business internationally.