Weapons, war and confusion

 In this episode of The Sound of Economics, host Rebecca Christie talks about the defence industry with Bruegel’s Guntram Wolff and journalist Sharon Weinberger, author of the books Imaginary Weapons, The Imagineers of War and the forthcoming Valley of Death. What defence systems are Europe and the US buying? Are countries like Poland and the Baltic states re-inventing how the EU approaches joint defence? How is the defence industry structured and what have been the major changes of the past 20 years? Does Europe really need its own DARPA – the US defence innovation agency? What is the future of joint procurement and how should public policy act? With ongoing wars in Ukraine and Iran, as well as heightened uncertainty in Asia and around the world, these questions are back in the spotlight. Relevant research:   Kapstein, E., J. Ospital and G. Wolff (2026) ‘Reforming European defence procurement to boost military innovation and startups’, Policy Brief 04/2026, Bruegel Weinberger, S., 'Washington Rewrites the Rules of Funding Technological Innovation', The Wall Street Journal, 20 April 2026 Weinberger, S. (2026) Valley of Death: How Big Tech is the Future of War, Little, Brown and Company

In this episode of The Sound of Economics, host Rebecca Christie talks about sustainable finance with Bruegel’s Silvia Merler and Dirk Schoenmaker. How will markets adjust to the European Union’s new disclosure framework, watered down by an 'omnibus' simplification package. Is it really simpler? Who is using the new disclosures and how could clearer rules attract more investment? How can the EU manage the creative destruction of transition and minimise the risk of stranded assets? They also discuss how United States asset managers invest and how they cast their governance votes. Should the European Central Bank offer a separate interest rate for finance linked to the energy transition? How do green bonds, sustainability-linked bonds and transition finance work in the market? For sustainable finance to reach its potential, the EU will need to improve its capital markets generally and find ways to make its disclosure framework more practical and internationally viable.Relevant research: Merler, S. (2025) ‘How to improve the European Union’s sustainable finance framework’, Policy Brief 05/2025, Bruegel. Merler, S. (2025a) 'Streamlining or hollowing out? The implications of the Omnibus package for sustainable finance', First Glance, 03 March, Bruegel. Schoenmaker, D. (2026) 'Risks for Europe of US dominance of global asset management', Policy Brief 07/2026, Bruegel.

In this episode of The Sound of Economics, Yuyun Zhan and Alicia García-Herrero sit down with Isabelle Mejean and Vincent Vicard to present their study on Chinese trade deflection, a chapter in the 2026 edition of the Paris Report, a CEPR-Bruegel initiative. They discuss the scale and speed of this redirection, what the European Union can do about it and the bigger structural problem facing European industry.Relevant research:Emlinger, C, I Mejean, K Lefebvre and V Vicard (2026), ‘EU under pressure? Exploring Chinese trade deflection‘, in Rey, H, B Weder di Mauro and J Zettelmeyer (eds), Paris Report 4: The New Global Imbalances, CEPR Press, Paris & London.  This episode is part of the ZhōngHuá Mundus series of The Sound of Economics. ZhōngHuá Mundus is a newsletter by Bruegel, bringing you monthly analysis of China in the world, as seen from Europe. Sign up now to receive it in your mailbox!

In this special episode of The Sound of Economics, host Rebecca Christie speaks with Bruegel’s Zsolt Darvas and Heather Grabbe about the historic Hungarian election of April 2026. Péter Magyar and his TISZA party won in a landslide over the Fidesz party and Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who has been in power for the past 16 years and changed the course of the European Union. Can Hungary unlock its EU funds and stay within its budget guardrails? What about the energy sector? Will the new government be more transparent about contracts with ties to Chinese and Russian investment? Is Hungary’s outlook on Ukraine likely to change? Will Hungary ever join the euro? How will the winners put together a new government to carry out their campaign promises? The discussion covers all this and more after nearly 80% of Hungarian voters went to the polls.  Related research: Darvas, Z. (2026) ‘Hungary’s new beginning – under tight fiscal constraints’, First Glance,13 April, Bruegel. Darvas, Z. (2019) 'With or without you: are central European countries ready for the euro?', Policy Contribution 12/2019, Bruegel.  Grabbe, H., J. Pisani-Ferry and J. Zettelmeyer (2025) ‘Updated assessment: Memos to the commissioners responsible for EU foreign, enlargement, and partnerships policies’, First Glance, 30 January, Bruegel. 'Hungary's revived euro adoption prospects', Finance Focus Event, 06 May 2026 with Júlia Király and Nicolas Véron, Bruegel. 

In this episode of The Sound of Economics, host Rebecca Christie speaks about global imbalances with Bruegel Director Jeromin Zettelmeyer and Beatrice Weder di Mauro, director of the Center for Economic Policy Research (CEPR). To launch the 2026 edition of the CEPR Paris report, they discuss why trade deficits and surpluses are soaring and what risks should worry us most. US external and public debt is at a historic high, raising new questions about the dollar as a safe haven. China seems on track to export even greater quantities at low prices, undermining the viability of industry everywhere else. Is a soft landing still feasible? What are the implications if not?Relevant research:Rey, H., B. Weder di Mauro and J. Zettelmeyer (eds) (2026), Paris Report 4: The New Global Imbalances, CEPR Press, Paris and London.  

In this episode of The Sound of Economics, host Rebecca Christie speaks about electric cars with Bruegel’s Ugnė Keliauskaitė, Antoine Mathieu Collin and Ben McWilliams. Europe is navigating its transition to green technology while facing energy shocks from the Iran war. How will the automotive sector adapt? Can the European Union make the most of its industrial and trade policy instruments to support industry with minimal protectionism? What do electric vehicle supply chains look like now? Who pays the costs to consumers and industry of making these changes, or funding the related government programmes? Bruegel’s clean tech tracker shows what manufacturing is happening in Europe and where the investment is coming from. How are these trends shaping the global auto trade, and what will be Europe’s best shot to secure jobs and growth? As the US and China ramp up industrial policy, the EU needs to stay competitive.Relevant research:  Bruegel Dataset (2025) 'European Clean Tech Tracker'. García-Bercero, I., A. Mathieu Collin, B. McWilliams, N. Poitiers and S. Tagliapietra (2026) ‘Made with Europe’ not ‘Made in Europe’ should guide EU industrial policy’, First Glance, 10 February, Bruegel.  Keliauskaitė, U., B. McWilliams and G. Zachmann (2026) 'Dependence on fossil fuels, not on the United States, is Europe’s worry', Analysis 05/2026, Bruegel. This podcast has been supported by the European Climate Foundation. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this podcast lies with the authors. The European Climate Foundation cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained or expressed therein.

In this episode of The Sound of Economics, host Rebecca Christie speaks about fossil fuel challenges with Admir Šahmanović, Montenegro's Minister of Energy and Mining, Bruegel’s Western Balkans expert Nina Vujanović and Rouven Stubbe of the Helmholz-Zentrum Berlin. How does Montenegro’s energy mix fit with its efforts to become the next member of the European Union? Do electricity subsidies for consumers make it harder to transition away from Communist-era coal-fired power plants? What new renewable energy projects are in the pipeline? Will the Iran war speed up progress? How does Montenegro work with EU neighbors like Croatia and Italy, and what is the role of the EU’s Energy Community programme? The EU’s new Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) poses a big hurdle for most of the Western Balkan countries. Bruegel’s experts break down the challenge in conversation with a top policymaker from the region.  Relevant research:Vujanović, N., R. Stubbe and M. Catarina-Louro (2025) ‘The Western Balkan energy sector: between Russia, the European Union and the green transition’, Working Paper 33/2025, Bruegel

In this episode of The Sound of Economics, host Rebecca Christie speaks about the European Union’s innovation hopes with Bruegel’s Fiona Scott Morton and Reinhilde Veugelers as well as Tobias Tröger, SAFE Chair of Private Law, Trade and Business Law, Jurisprudence at Frankfurt’s Goethe University. The European Commission on March 18 released its “EU Inc.” proposal to make it easier for innovative companies to get their start and scale up. The new plan uses a lawmaking tool known as the 28th regime. What is it and how does it work – will it help companies find financing and navigate thickets of national and local bureaucracy? What else can you do with it? Is the Commission proposal good? What are some alternatives? And what will this mean for Europe’s notaries? Promising firms have a lot to gain from these conversations, if good policy design follows. Relevant research: Christie, R. (2026) ‘28th regimes to help Europe’s capital markets’, First Glance, 09 March, Bruegel.  Enriques, L., Casimiro A. Nigro and Tobias H. Tröger (2026) ‘Why the 28th Regime Proposal Falls Short of Europe's Challenge’, Oxford Business Law Blog. Enriques, L., Casimiro A. Nigro and Tobias H. Tröger (2025) ‘Mandatory Corporate Law as an Obstacle to Venture Capital Contracting in Europe’, The CLS Blue Sky Blog. Scott Morton, F. and R. Veugelers (2025) ‘Regime 0: Europe-wide incorporation for startups to kickstart innovative growth,’ Policy Brief 33/2025, Bruegel.

In this episode of The Sound of Economics, host Rebecca Christie talks about the economy and politics of Italy with Bruegel’s Emmanuel Mourlon-Druol and Francesco Papadia. Why does Italy always feel on the brink of a crisis, even as it has been one of the European Union’s strongest and most important countries since the bloc’s founding? With public finances that are outperforming France but growth persistently elusive, the country has a two-sided performance that will require – and may not get – significant structural reforms to stabilise. What will be the consequences for Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni from the upcoming referendum on the legal system? Her far-right origins have morphed into a complex mix of centrist and right-wing positions, an experience that could offer a window into the coming French elections. From 1941’s Ventotene manifesto to today’s war in Ukraine, Rome has been one of Europe’s most complex and important political centres.

On 12 March 2026, China approved its 15th Five-Year Plan, setting the country's economic and strategic direction through 2030.  In this episode of The Sound of Economics, Yuyun Zhan and Alicia García-Herrero sit down with Bert Hofman for a first assessment of the plan. They discuss its key priorities — from industrial policy and export-led technology growth to social policy and redistribution — and examine what Beijing's new blueprint means for the European economy. This episode is part of the ZhōngHuá Mundus series of The Sound of Economics. ZhōngHuá Mundus is a newsletter by Bruegel, bringing you monthly analysis of China in the world, as seen from Europe. Sign up now to receive it in your mailbox!