France, Germany push to carve auto rules out of EU industrial policy

France and Germany have reached a bilateral agreement to significantly revise EU automotive policy, easing the 2035 combustion engine ban and relaxing CO₂ emission targets while simultaneously pushing for stricter 'Made in Europe' manufacturing requirements. This signals a coordinated Franco-German effort to balance climate objectives with industrial protectionism, potentially slowing decarbonization efforts but bolstering domestic manufacturing against Chinese competition. The specifics of the revised regulations and their formal EU adoption remain unclear.