News and analysis on trade policy in Europe
Thursday, May 8, 2025
Spain’s Mariano Rajoy is visiting Brazil and Uruguay this week for a trade promotion tour and to talk EU Mercosur free trade. This is a good moment to look into some of the – many – sensitive files in the talks: agriculture and wine and spirits. Latin America is …
Trade policy was not a central topic in the campaign in the run-up to the first round of French presidential elections on Sunday (23 April) which propelled 39-old Emmanuel Macron to first place, ahead of the populist Eurosceptic Marine Le Pen. What would France’s approach be to the EU’s trade policy under Macron …
Britain’s opposition Labour Party has set out its general approach to Britain’s planned exit from the European Union as part of the country’s upcoming general election. The focus is on staying as closely tied to the EU’s single market as possible, and prioritising trade with the EU. “We believe in building a new relationship with …
EU trade commissioner Cecilia Malmström said that although “there is still a case for an ambitious trade agreement between the EU and the US”, there is a “need to clarify that both sides share an ambition to find solutions to difficult issues”. The EU’s trade chief spoke in Washington …
US interest in reviving TTIP negotiations has met with both relief and scepticism. Few, however, believe Cecilia Malmström, the EU’s trade chief, will come back from a trip to Washington this week with any important announcements on the future of the flagship transatlantic trade pact. “The press reports about a …
You’ll probably soon be back from an Easter break and have missed some news. Or you were away last week and missed those news. In any case, we wrapped up your Friday pdf in such a way as to have two weeks in one, ideal for those who’ve been away and are …
Argentina’s foreign minister Susana Malcorra reiterated Argentina’s wish to see the recently re-launched EU-Mercosur free trade negotiations finalised in 2017 during a trip to Brussels on Thursday (20 April 2017). Mauricio Macri’s government wants to send a strong pro-market and pro-trade signal to the world. Buenos Aires will be the location of …
‘Leaks’ to the press tend to be part of some negotiation and bargaining process, where journalists are used as little pawns in a wider power game, be it internal bureaucratic power tussles or grand international games. Rarely do leaks actually reveal any new substance to, for example, a trade negotiation. This is …
US commerce secretary Wilbur Ross recently rejected claims the United States was becoming more protectionist as “rubbish”. He also said of his country: “We are the least protectionist of the major [economic] areas”. The US government is currently reviewing some trading partners’ trade practices. It wishes to launch bilateral trade …
Ever wondered what the state of Bavaria thinks of the EU’s plans for a multilateral investment court? You can find out by ploughing through the many responses the public consultation led by the European Commission on its plans for a new mechanism to resolve disputes between international investors and states. …
