News and analysis on trade policy in Europe
Friday, May 2, 2025
Caution. That’s how one could sum up the decisions taken by European Union heads of government today in Brussels on China and on the United States. Council conclusions released this afternoon largely endorse the policy proposals tabled by the European Commission last week to address concerns over reciprocity in market …
The United States will be an uninvited guest at a coming EU-China summit in April. The meeting will be held in Brussels and is part of a wider European tour by president Xi Jinping, who will also make stops in Rome, Monaco, Paris and Croatia. China principally plans to expand …
Two alpha-males met in Washington yesterday and displayed their mastery of the Art of the Deal. But it’s worth looking at at the fine print of the Brazil-United States understanding reached last night.
This week’s main focus will be on Brexit, EU-US relations, and China. Myanmar, Cambodia, Vietnam, will also be on the agenda. Brexit and FTA rollovers The House of Commons might vote a third time on Britain’s withdrawal agreement with the EU on Tuesday or Wednesday if prime minister Theresa May …
It’s been an eventful week, with the EU coming up with new initiatives vis-a-vis China, the European Parliament voting down the EU’s United States trade strategy, a beef deal with Washington, and negotiations going on with Indonesia and Mercosur to try and achieve a free trade agreement with them. In …
The European Parliament voted on a legally non-binding resolution on the launch of new negotiations with the United States on tariff liberalisation and conformity assessment. MEPs adopted amendments tabled by the groups EFDD, ENF, Greens and S&D calling not to endorse the negotiation mandates. This in turn killed off the …
In November 2016, European Union and United States negotiators decided to put negotiations towards a Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership on ice. As new negotiations were initiated last year, observers – and critics – say the way Washington and the EU are going about the new talks is just a …
Ahead of the European Council next week and an EU-China summit in early April, the European Commission formally tabled a series of actions that make policy vis-à-vis Beijing “more realistic, assertive and multi-faceted”. The new commission communication entitled EU China – A Strategic Outlook says that “there is a growing …
Welcome to trade mega-week folks! Brexit adrift Will we have significant trade rupture across the Channel and Irish sea in less than three weeks? Or no Brexit at all? New votes in Westminster starting tomorrow could indicate – or not – where the UK is heading in its attempts to …
This week more than half the World Trade Organization’s membership formally kick-started negotiations towards a ‘plurilateral’ agreement on e-commerce.
