EU-China Archives

At a time of increased tensions between Brussels and Beijing, the two partners met in Venice on Friday (19 January) to launch the EU-China Tourism Year, hoping to patch up or better revitalise relations.

The European Commission launched an investigation on Thursday (21 December) into whether Chinese exporters of electronic bicycles (e-bikes) benefited from excessive state subsidies, increasing trade tensions between Brussels and Beijing.

China launched what will become the world’s largest carbon market on Tuesday (19 December), surpassing the EU’s flagship market mechanism to cap and trade emissions. The scheme is part of a host of major policies China is using to peak its GHGs by 2030.

The EU has a trash problem. It used to ship 60% of plastics and 13% of paper collected for recycling to China, but Beijing has decided to curb its appetite for foreign waste. 

While the EU-UK talks to agree on an orderly divorce have stalled, Chinese investors are willing to pour more money in the exiting member state over the coming years despite the uncertainty around its future relationship with the bloc.

The European Parliament overwhelmingly passed a law on Wednesday (15 November) that gives the EU far more legal freedom to tighten trade barriers against cheap imports from China.

Fans of soft cheeses in China have reason to celebrate after the country reversed a ban on mould-ripened cheeses, allowing imports of Camembert, Brie and Roquefort, European Union officials said on Monday (23 October).

Europe hopes China’s upcoming Communist Party Congress will help to speed up the country’s market reforms, the European Union’s ambassador to China said, calling Chinese criticism of an EU plan to screen foreign investment “unreasonable”.

The EU and China, the world’s second and third largest economies, should be looking to turn their trade relations into a genuine partnership but both are still wary of protectionism and unfair competition, according to a comprehensive report published on Wednesday (13 September).

Europe’s solar industry has condemned an EU vote to impose another round of duties on Chinese imports, just weeks before a US trade panel is due to rule on similar tariffs. EURACTIV’s partner The Guardian reports.

The Italian ministry of agriculture declared its intention on Monday (4 September) to include the origin of primary ingredients on the labels of tomato-based products, drawing criticism from the European food and drink industry for "undermining the EU single market for food".

TTIP is on ice, CETA will be provisionally applied from September and talks with Japan are nearly completed. But EU trade policy is far from done yet and a busy negotiating schedule lies ahead. EURACTIV Germany reports.

The European Union has imposed provisional import duties of as much as 28.5% on certain Chinese corrosion-resistant steels after an eight-month investigation found that the products benefited from unfair subsidies.

The world's most powerful nations risk failing to make enough progress on tackling steel overcapacity by an August deadline, which is seen by the United States as a potential reason to start a trade war.

Just hours after President Donald Trump pulled the United States out of the Paris climate agreement, the EU and China tried on Friday (2 June) to find common ground to ease trade tensions that have divided them in recent months.

The first freight train to run from the United Kingdom to China departed yesterday (10 April), carrying goods like vitamins, baby products and pharmaceuticals as Britain seeks to burnish its global trading credentials for when it leaves the European Union.

China on Saturday (11 March) tried to downplay concerns it is reducing market access for foreign enterprises, days after a report by an EU group accused Beijing of trying to skew its business playing field towards domestic firms.

China expressed concerns on Tuesday (28 February) over what it said was increasing protectionism after European Union regulators imposed new duties on steel imports from the world's biggest producer.

The European Commission welcomed Germany, France and Italy’s proposal to halt China’s buyouts in Europe in some cases given the “limited access” to the Chinese market.

Leading Asian economies stressed on Wednesday (8 February) their attention would continue to be focused on the EU-27 post-Brexit, ahead of any possibilities for the UK opened up by Brexit.

Messaging and e-commerce app WeChat is courting European businesses to advertise and sell to its more than 700 million users in China.

A majority of EU countries yesterday (26 January) opposed a European Commission plan to extend anti-dumping duties on Chinese solar panels for two years, according to EU diplomats, putting pressure on the EU executive to review its proposal.

Former World Trade Organisation chief and EU Trade Commissioner Pascal Lamy has denounced Donald Trump's protectionist trade policy for being outdated, telling a EURACTIV event he isn't concerned that European politicians will follow the new US president's cue.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order formally withdrawing the United States from the 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal yesterday (23 January) as Europe sniffed a chance to pick up the free trade the US is turning its back on.