News and analysis on trade policy in Europe
Wednesday, April 30, 2025
“The world is in a difficult place,” said Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala. Speaking at the opening session of the annual World Trade Organization public forum in Geneva, the institution’s director-general called on policy-makers “to think of policies to restore growth”.
WTO dispute settlement system reform discussions are getting off to a timid start. This comes as decisive alternative appeals arbitration panels are gradually coming on stream in Geneva.
Big Geopolitics, a war next door, soaring inflation, an energy crisis, a burning climate crisis, an economic downturn, possibly a recession. It is the autumn 2022 rentrée and there are about eighteen months left to get a range of pathbreaking pieces of legislation and trade agreements to the finishing line …
It’s still very quiet in Brussels but trade policy has started stirring ahead of a packed rentrée next week.
August is traditionally quiet in European Union trade policy making. Here’s this month’s main Brussels trade story so far. A panel of arbitrators appointed under the 2016 Economic Partnership Agreement between the EU and the Southern African Development Community ruled on 3 August that an import safeguard on frozen chicken …
A last little present for the August holidays brought to us from the southern hemisphere. South Africa requested consultations today with the EU in Geneva regarding measures applied mid July which add extra precautionary measures on its citrus fruit shipments from overseas. The measures are taken prima facie to avert …
AUGUST RECESS AT BORDERLEX: As of Monday 1 August, the small team at Borderlex will be on a break from trade news reporting as the policy machineries in Brussels, London and Geneva themselves grind to a halt for the summer. We will be back during the week of 22 August. …
Appeal arbitrators issued the first ruling that follows the demise of the Appellate Body in late 2019 at the World Trade Organization. The format and content of the award give an initial indication of what the future of WTO dispute settlement might be.
The European Commission announced it was planning to suspend import duties of 5.5% and 6.5% on nitrogen based inputs for fertiliser production. This is seen as a means to support food production and keep prices in check in response to the fallout of the war in Ukraine.
“Engaging China will remain key”, concluded the European Commission’s director-general for trade in a short Twitter thread following the first High Level Economic and Trade Dialogue held since 2020. The meeting was chaired by China’s vice-premier Liu He and the EU’s commission executive vice president Valdis Dombrovskis. It was held …
