News and analysis on trade policy in Europe
Friday, April 25, 2025
This has been very intense last week of July on WTO issues – be it agriculture, or the quest for a new leadership in the organisation. On Friday, WTO members agreed to follow General Council head David Walker’s recommendations on how the new WTO director-general will be selected after 7 …
While Brussels quiets down somewhat on the trade front, the WTO in Geneva will see a spurt of activity before it shuts down for a few weeks in August. No holiday break for London as it continues on its winding path to a post-Brexit FTA network. In Brussels we will …
The policy churn is expected to quiet down somewhat this week as we enter the third week of July with further risks of a spike of new COVID-19 cases: retreat to home and taking the opportunity to holiday is the new game in town – while we wait for a …
WTO director-general candidates This week in Geneva auditions will be held from Wednesday to Friday. The eight candidates to the position of World Trade Organization director-general will make their case in front of the assembled country ambassadors to the organisation. These meetings kick-off a vetting process whereby candidates will gradually …
Germany takes over rotating EU presidency On Wednesday, Germany is taking over the presidency of the European Union for a period of six months. Its full six-month programme for the period starting in July 2021 will be released on Tuesday. But an 18-month ‘trio’ programme put together with Portugal and …
EU China Summit This week will start big, with an EU-China summit kicking off this morning. The meeting will be attended by Chinese President Xi Jinping himself, the Commission’s president Ursula von der Leyen and the Council’s boss Charles Michel to take stock of an increasingly complex and controversial relationship …
This week, the trade policy world will be looking a lot to Geneva. WTO Director General vetting process begins Today begins a one-month period during which World Trade Organization members will file nominations for candidates for the position of director-general, which Brazilian diplomat Roberto Azevêdo quit one year before the …
We are looking to a very packed agenda in EU trade this week. First and foremost, today is the day when the EU’s 30–day export restrictions regime for personal protective equipment expiresMonday 25 May. There is little sign yet of an extension – but the day has barely begun. Future …
The trade policy machinery in Brussels is starting to function again, albeit at slow pace. So welcome back to our Week Ahead series! Trade ministers will convene for a videoconference on Thursday to discuss the implications of COVID-19 for trade and global supply chains. This is their first meeting since …
This is a coronavirus alert. The European Council is reducing the number of ministerial meetings to help contain the spread of the coronavirus. It was judged that the Foreign Affairs Council (Trade) meeting scheduled on Thursday Week Ahead: FAC Trade did not have “pressing issues” to tackle – hence a …
