Luxembourg, 4 March 2026
European Council President António Costa has called for a renewed focus on competitiveness, investment and industrial scale in the European Union, arguing that Europe must respond to mounting geoeconomic pressures by strengthening its single market, boosting investment and reducing strategic dependencies.
Delivering the keynote address at the EIB Group Forum 2026, Costa described the current moment as a turning point for the EU, as the bloc confronts an increasingly unstable international environment marked by geopolitical tensions, economic competition and disruptions to the rules-based order.
Costa praised the European Investment Bank for a record €100 billion in new financing in 2025, which helped mobilise additional investment across Europe and globally. Nearly 5% of EIB financing within the EU — around €4 billion — now supports security and defence, reinforcing deterrence capabilities and infrastructure.
The EIB has also expanded initiatives aimed at strengthening Europe’s innovation ecosystem, including TechEU, while maintaining strong support for the green and energy transition. Costa also highlighted the bank’s role in maintaining a European presence in regions such as Africa and Latin America, strengthening partnerships and supporting EU values abroad.
Europe entering an era of geoeconomic instability
Costa warned that the EU faces a challenging global environment in which traditional economic advantages are increasingly tested. China is expanding its economic and political influence, relations with the United States are under strain and the war involving Iran has exposed new levels of instability in the international system.
Despite these pressures, Costa stressed that the European economy still rests on strong foundations, including a highly skilled workforce, world-class research capacity, strong institutions and deep integration into global trade.
Nevertheless, he argued that Europe must act decisively to maintain prosperity and resilience. After declaring 2025 the year of European defence, Costa said 2026 should become the year of European competitiveness.
Completing the single market
A central pillar of the competitiveness agenda is the completion of the single market. Costa argued that the EU must move towards what he called “One Market for One Europe”, integrating sectors such as telecommunications, energy and capital markets.
A key element of this effort is the Savings and Investment Union, which aims to channel Europe’s large pool of savings into productive investment within the EU. Costa said the EU should finalise the remaining elements of this project by 2028, completing the integration process that began with the single market in 1992.
Enabling European companies to scale
Costa also argued that Europe must allow companies to scale more easily to compete globally. While EU policy has traditionally focused on supporting small and medium-sized enterprises, he said policymakers must also adopt a “Think scale first” approach to support larger investments and innovation.
Updating EU competition policy will be part of this shift, including a review of merger guidelines that considers global markets rather than strictly European ones.
Simplification and regulatory reform
The EU must also pursue a strong simplification agenda. Costa warned that the so-called “Brussels effect” should not become a regulatory burden.
He called for fewer directives and more directly applicable EU regulations, alongside the creation of a “28th regime” for corporate law, allowing companies to operate across all member states under a single set of European rules.
Addressing Europe’s energy price gap
Energy costs remain a major challenge for European competitiveness. Costa noted that energy prices in some parts of Europe are roughly twice as high as in the United States and three times higher than in China, creating a significant disadvantage for energy-intensive industries and emerging technologies such as data centres.
He stressed that the EU’s emissions trading system accounts for only a small portion of the price gap and argued that the real issue lies in Europe’s reliance on imported fossil fuels.
Strengthening energy interconnections and accelerating the transition to domestic clean energy sources will therefore be critical for both competitiveness and strategic autonomy.
Strategic industries and trade diversification
Costa also emphasised the importance of protecting strategic industries and reducing dependencies in sectors such as defence, space, clean technologies, quantum computing, artificial intelligence and payment systems.
While the EU should remain committed to open trade, he said the bloc must also diversify supply chains and consider targeted European preference mechanisms in strategic sectors where necessary.
Trade policy will remain a central pillar of Europe’s economic strategy. Costa highlighted the EU’s network of agreements covering 80 partners, with additional deals under negotiation or ratification with 27 more countries.
Recent agreements with Mercosur and India were described as major milestones that reinforce the EU’s role as a stabilising force in the global economy.
Closing Europe’s investment gap
Costa warned that Europe still faces a significant investment shortfall, particularly for scaling innovative companies.
European scale-ups currently raise only about half as much funding as comparable firms in Silicon Valley, often relying heavily on investors from outside the EU.
He stressed that initiatives such as the European Tech Champions Initiative (ETCI) and TechEU, supported by the EIB, are essential to strengthening Europe’s venture capital ecosystem.
Costa also highlighted the impact of the InvestEU programme, where each euro from the EU budget has mobilised approximately €15 in investment, demonstrating how public funds can effectively crowd in private capital.
Competitiveness and social cohesion
While competitiveness remains a priority, Costa emphasised that economic growth must go hand in hand with social cohesion.
Quoting former European Commission President Jacques Delors, he argued that the single market strengthens cohesion and shared prosperity across the EU.
Strong welfare systems, affordable housing and high-quality jobs, he said, are not obstacles to competitiveness but essential components of Europe’s economic model.
Housing affordability was identified as a growing challenge across Europe. The EIB provided around €5 billion in housing financing in 2025, and Costa welcomed the goal of delivering one million homes by 2030.
Addressing housing shortages, he warned, is essential for maintaining public trust in democratic institutions and ensuring intergenerational fairness.
A call to shape Europe’s future
Concluding his speech, Costa quoted Portuguese poet Fernando Pessoa, saying that Europe “thirsts to be created” and “hungers for the future”.
Delivering that future, he said, is the responsibility of European institutions and member states alike.
E-Summary by ChatGPT, prompted by Insight EU, based on the speech below.
Keynote speech by President António Costa at the EIB Group Forum 2026
Dear President, dear Nadia,
Dear Vice-Presidents,
Governors,
Distinguished guests,
Ladies and gentlemen,
It is a great pleasure to be here with you today in the EIB Group Forum. 2025 has been an historic year for the European Union. We have built the main building blocks of the Europe of Defence. We have increased our steadfast support for Ukraine, to achieve a just and lasting peace. We forged new regional partnerships all over the world, especially on fair-trade.
It has also been an historic year for the European Investment Bank. A record of €100 billion in new financing, mobilising substantial additional investment across Europe and beyond.
A decisive stepping-up in support for security and defence. Nearly 5% — around €4 billion — of its financing inside the European Union now reinforces deterrence capabilities and infrastructure. This is a very welcome development.
The launch of key initiatives such as TechEU. And unwavering commitment to the green and energy transition.
In a multipolar world, the European Investment Bank has maintained a strong European presence in Africa and Latin America. Two regions with strong partnerships and shared growth alongside the European Union. It highlights the European Investment Bank’s unique role in supporting European Union values and priorities. Well done, querida Nadia.
This year’s Forum takes place at a turning point for the European Union. We are redefining our competitiveness agenda in a fast-changing geoeconomic environment.
Let me begin with confidence this morning. The European economy stands on strong foundations:
- a highly skilled workforce
- world-class research
- industrial excellence
- a sound financial system
- deep integration in global trade
- strong institutions.
We should be confident and proud of our social market economy. But we must also be realistic. Our prosperity is under pressure. We face fragmentation and geoeconomic challenges that test our competitiveness and resilience.
We have entered an era of instability. The international rules-based order is being undermined. China is flexing its economic and political power. Our relations with the United States are under strain. The war in Iran has revealed a new level of instability and disruption in the international order.
In this environment, Europe needs, and is responding, with determination. Just as we made 2025 the year of European Defence, we are making 2026 the year of European Competitiveness. Less than three weeks ago, I convened European Union leaders in Alden Biesen to create new momentum around competitiveness. Only a more competitive and resilient economy promotes our prosperity, creates high quality jobs, and ensures affordability.
At the core lies the jewel in our crown: the single market. Just as we moved from the common to the single market, we must now complete this journey by creating ‘One Market for One Europe’.
First, we must complete the single market. We must integrate sectors like telecoms, energy and capital markets. We need a Savings and Investment Union capable of turning European savings into European investment. We need a new investment culture, with household participation and strong consumer protection. We will act with determination to deliver by the end of 2027 on the Savings and Investments Union as proposed by the Commission. 2028 will be the year in which we finalise what was left to be completed in 1992.
Second, we must allow companies to scale-up. We have long said ‘Think small first’. Since SMEs are the backbone of our prosperity, many of them lack the scale to compete globally. Now we must also say ‘Think scale first’. Allowing a company to scale up in Europe to achieve the necessary levels of investment and innovation and to compete in the global market. We have to update our competition policy and acknowledge that in the current geoeconomic context requires us to consider the global market as the relevant market. And the review of merger guidelines is a decisive opportunity.
Third, European institutions are embracing a true simplification agenda. The Brussels effect must not become a burden. Member states must also address gold-plating and domestic barriers. The most direct route to simplification is common European rules. Less directives, more regulations. We must go ahead with the 28th regime at least for corporate law, to make sure our companies can operate seamlessly across our 27 member states with a simple and single set of corporate rules. Let businesses opt in to European rules.
Fourth, on energy prices. The energy transition remains the best long-term strategy for Europe to achieve strategic autonomy and lower prices.
For now, it is true that energy in some parts of Europe is about twice as expensive as in the United States and three times more expensive than in China. This undermines our competitiveness. Especially for some industrial sectors where energy is a large cost. But also in some upcoming tech activities, such as data centres needed for many of tomorrow’s value creation.
There are no silver bullets. And, we also need to make the right diagnosis in order to avoid the wrong solutions.
The ETS represents, on average, only 11% of the price premium. The solution does not lie here, but rather in the underlying energy source that is used to produce electricity.
Contrary to the United States, Europe is a fossil fuel importer. The ongoing crisis in the Middle East shows once again how existential it is for Europe to become more independent. Electricity is cheaper in those areas of Europe where clean homegrown and secure energy sets the price more often. It is higher in those areas where imported natural gas is needed instead.
We must reinforce energy interconnections and ensure that exports of cheaper energy do not raise prices in the exporting member state. Working closely with the European Commission, we will examine with a sense of urgency concrete measures at our next European Council meeting in March.
Fifth, Europe must protect strategic industries and reduce dependencies on defence, space, cleantech, quantum, Artificial Intelligence, as well as payment systems. We will map and identify our dependencies and tackle them through a diversification strategy.
And on European preference, we need to use it in selected strategic sectors in a proportionate and targeted way, after an in-depth analysis, to identify where it is effectively necessary and useful. A European preference that needs to respect our trade agreements, especially our relationship with countries in the European Economic Area. But also our strategic defence partnerships with several countries around the world.
Sixth, we must continue an ambitious and pragmatic trade policy, focused on diversification. The European Union is a global trade powerhouse. We have built the world’s most extensive network of trade agreements, covering 80 partners. And we are in the process of adopting or ratifying agreements with a further 27 countries.
The recent agreements with Mercosur and India are two impressive game-changers. Both reinforce the European Union’s role as a reliable and predictable partner, and as a stabilizer of the international economy. Trade deals are global rulebooks, tariffs are taxes on citizens and companies.
Finally, Europe lacks investment. There will be no competitiveness without more investment. I have already mentioned the importance of the Savings and Investment Union, but we also need public investment.
I welcome the ambition behind the Commission’s proposal for a new long-term budget (MFF) and the importance of creating a powerful competitiveness fund. Public resources must also be used strategically to de-risk projects and crowd in private capital. The European Investment Bank also plays a crucial role on this. In 2025, it accounted for around 30% of venture debt and 24% of venture capital in the European Union market.
But the scale-up gap remains. European scale-ups raise about half of what their Silicon Valley peers raise and rely more on non-European Union investors. Initiatives like ETCI and TechEU are essential to nurture Europe’s venture ecosystem, with the European Investment Bank acting as an anchor investor at the centre of our capital markets.
Let us build on successes such as InvestEU, where one euro from the European Union budget mobilised fifteen euros in investment. Let us use limited public money intelligently to de-risk and deliver impact at scale.
Ladies and gentleman, competitiveness is not an end in itself. As Jacques Delors said: ‘la cohésion pousse la convergence qui enrichit le marché unique; et l’approfondissement du marché unique soutient la solidarité qui unit’. Our single market reinforces our cohesion and our shared prosperity. It must serve a more affordable, cohesive and people-centred Union.
A social Europe is part of our DNA. It preserves our values, our social model and our quality of life. Strong welfare states, affordable housing and high-quality jobs are not obstacles to competitiveness — they are its foundation. Investment in education, skills and sustainable housing builds the productive infrastructure of our future.
Last year, leaders discussed in the European Council for the first time the challenge of affordable housing. The European Investment Bank stepped up with around €5 billion in housing financing in 2025. And I welcome the goal of delivering one million homes by 2030. Local, national, and European institutions must address this urgent challenge quickly.
Affordable housing is at the core of people’s disillusionment with democratic institutions. It is vital for social cohesion and intergenerational fairness.
Ladies and gentleman, let me conclude with the words of Fernando Pessoa, the greatest Portuguese poet of the 20th Century: ‘a Europa tem sede de que se crie, tem fome de futuro!’ Europe thirsts to be created. It hungers for the Future! It is our duty to create that future. It is time for the European Union to deliver.
Thank you very much.
Source – European Council:
https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2026/03/04/keynote-speech-by-president-antonio-costa-at-the-eib-group-forum-2026/