Brussels Edition: Climate collaboration

Follow Us Get the newsletter Welcome to the Brussels Edition, Bloomberg's daily briefing on what matters most in the heart of the European Union. Joe Biden's climate envoy John Kerry will be in town tomorrow to meet the Commission's top brass, as the EU and the U.S. coordinate their stance ahead of a crunch summit in Glasgow later this year. The visit comes after Biden and Ursula von der Leyen agreed to suspend tariffs on billions of dollars of each other's products, easing a 17-year dispute. While the move has all the hallmarks of a rapprochement, it doesn't mean the transatlantic alliance is fully back on track, as divergences persist on key strategic areas including China and gas imports. At least Washington and Brussels are more or less on the same page when it comes to climate these days, and the main focus of Kerry's talks in Brussels will be how to convince the rest of the world (see: China) to raise their ambitions.  —Viktoria Dendrinou and Nikos Chrysoloras What's Happening Stimulus Scenarios | ECB officials will set policy this week against a backdrop of investors betting on a global upturn, even with the euro region still hobbled by lockdowns. Christine Lagarde will need to test her current stimulus plans against the challenges presented by those contrasting developments. Investors will also be watching today's bond-buying data to see if the ECB ramped up purchases last week. Vaccine No. 4 | The EU's medicines regulator is set to recommend Johnson & Johnson's coronavirus vaccine this week, adding a fourth shot to the bloc's arsenal. The decision will come at a tricky time in relations between the EU and pharmaceuticals companies, with France backing a decision by Italy, with support from the EU, to block a shipment of AstraZeneca vaccines to Australia.  Delivery Delays | EU nations have received only about a third of the quarterly target for Covid-19 vaccines produced by Moderna. That's according to a delivery schedule published on Facebook by Hungarian Cabinet Minister Gergely Gulyas in defense of a decision to opt out of additional purchases. He's counting on China's Sinopharm and Russia's Sputnik V to allow Hungary to meet its inoculation targets. Women's Day | U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris and New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern will address EU lawmakers today for International Women's Day. While women currently head two of the EU's top institutions for the first time, only 7% of the bloc's CEOs are female. And women across the EU are still paid on average 14% less than men, leading the commission to propose transparency legislation to help close the gap. In Case You Missed It Equity Anxiety | Europe's vaccine blunders are alarming some of the world's top investors, who see economic growth imperiled by a slow pace of business reopenings. European equity funds have recorded three weeks of outflows, with some warning that the continued virus outbreak could hurt trading strategies in the single-currency. Here's what investors are worried about. Italian Job | A decision by Mario Draghi's government to recruit McKinsey & Co. for help with the EU's recovery package has prompted disquiet within his coalition. While the consultant will advise the Italian finance ministry and help accelerate the drafting of spending plans, governance will remain the responsibility of the ministry and other authorities. Political Football | FC Barcelona calls itself "more than a club," an affirmation that its Catalan culture and identity within Spain goes beyond soccer. That motto could be about to take on wider significance as it gets more deeply embroiled in the nation's politics. Come Visit | Cyprus said it will let in Britons who have had two Covid-19 jabs from May, opening the door to a wave of older U.K. holidaymakers as it targets an early return in tourist traffic. The move highlights the EU's struggle to forge a common approach on immunity certificates and the risk that tourist-dependent countries will break ranks.  Chart of the Day In Finland, the happiest nation on Earth, women have started trading a much larger chunk of the stock market in a development that's suddenly given them an edge in one of the world's most egalitarian regions. The number of Finnish women trading stocks and funds has doubled over the past two years and now makes up more than a third of the total, according to Nordnet AB, one of the Nordic region's main retail brokers. The development coincides with efforts in Finland to become the world's most financially literate nation. Today's Agenda All times CET. German industry output 5 p.m. U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris and New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern will address the European Parliament during the International Women's Day celebration. Like the Brussels Edition? Don't keep it to yourself. Colleagues and friends can sign up here. For even more: Subscribe to Bloomberg.com for unlimited access to trusted, data-driven journalism and gain expert analysis from exclusive subscriber-only newsletters. 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