News and analysis on trade policy in Europe
Saturday, April 26, 2025
Japanese business groups want the EU and the UK to start working on rolling over the yet-to-be ratified EU-Japan free trade accord so that it also applies to Britain after Brexit. They also set out specific demands for the future EU-UK trade agreement. These demands echo origin rule requests by Britain’s …
Statements by European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier and the European Parliament’s Brexit leader, Guy Verhofstadt, today in the parliament in Strasbourg revealed nothing new about the EU’s position on everything related to Brexit (details in this blog series). So what’s new on the Brexit-and-trade …
Trade news in the EU in recent days was dominated by the bloc’s trade spat with the United States. In Britain on Friday, everyone was obsessing about Brexit and Prime Minister Theresa May’s speech on what her government wants to achieve for the country’s future relationship with the EU27 – …
There’s been a tremendous amount of media hoo-hah about the EU’s proposals on Northern Ireland in the draft Article 50 Withdrawal Agreement terms released today in Brussels. Here some highlights of the 119-page text relevant for trade policy wonks that are less visible in the media. Also, Tokyo explicitly said …
The British government released its response to the European Union’s proposal on a transition period post Brexit. The text was part of the discussions held in Brussels on Tuesday. As widely reported in the press, the UK government is seeking a longer status-quo transition period by which all stays …
In a note released today, the United Kingdom’s government has spelled out in clear terms how it hopes to continue to benefit from international agreements – including free trade deals – signed by the EU during its Brexit transition period. As Britain leaves the EU, international agreements it is …
The United Kingdom won’t be blocked from negotiating or renegotiating international trade agreements with third countries during the Brexit transition period, as long as it doesn’t start applying them before the end of that period, EU member states clarified today. Although doing so is the British government’s formal …
Brexit crunch time is nigh. With the European Council’s expected decision to accept to move on to talking about a transition period to avoid a ‘cliff edge’ Brexit, another type of ‘cliff edge’ is emerging: that of the EU’s existing free trade agreements with third countries. There is a …
As the date of Brexit approaches, Britain and various European Union trading partners are multiplying contacts with London to gauge what their future trade relationship will be once the UK leaves the bloc. As conversations with these countries deepen, the task appears increasingly complex. Current contacts with Australia and Switzerland reveal …
British International Trade Secretary Liam Fox held talks with a range of high-level officials in Geneva today and yesterday, with his main message being a reiteration of the UK’s commitment to the World Trade Organization and global commerce. Following a busy day of discussions with officials including WTO Deputy …
