Change bloc

EU policy in Brussels is taking a more protectionist direction, according to the Financial Times, and this is worrying free-market-minded members of the bloc. The shift, framed as a turn away from open-market principles, has reportedly unsettled governments and politicians who favour trade liberalisation. Concerns centre on what the change means for the EU’s single market and its traditional support for open competition.

Law firm Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath has published an analysis of the proposed European Innovation Act, examining how the legislation could change intellectual property investment across the European Union. The publication suggests the law may alter how companies value and manage IP assets in the bloc. Beyond the firm's own briefing, little independent commentary is visible yet, and the Act's specific provisions and legislative status remain unverified.

With one month to go before Israel's election, a new poll shows the anti-Netanyahu 'change bloc' and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's bloc tied at 52 seats each, according to the Jerusalem Post. The deadlock suggests neither side is positioned to secure a majority in the 120-seat Knesset, keeping the outcome highly uncertain and raising the prospect of another prolonged coalition-building struggle after the vote.