News and analysis on trade policy in Europe
Monday, May 5, 2025
EU member states are gradually accepting to exercise greater transparency in their joint trade policy making. The Council today released the negotiating mandate it gave the European Commission towards the modernisation of the 2002 EU-Chile Association Agreement, a very early move by member-state standards. The mandate itself reveals high EU …
This week in EU trade was marked by a first substantive round of trade negotiations with Chile, as well as a meeting of the EU Korea trade committee dominated by EU recriminations against Korean beef import restrictions and one of its labour union laws. Otherwise it’s been report and data …
There were plenty of trade stories from around the world this week, including efforts by China’s president to ease strained ties with the US, a request for Washington to probe the security risks of uranium imports, India’s plan to hold a mini-ministerial meeting, Australia’s trade challenge of Canadian measures on …
The EU and Chile are launching formal talks to upgrade their 2002 Association Agreement this week in Santiago. For both parties, the initiative has greater ‘geostrategic’ than actual economic significance, although for Chile in particular, economics also matter. Diversification and geostrategy Chile is traditionally the leading free …
The year began with a bang in some parts of the world in terms of commerce, including a World Trade Organization complained filed by Canada against US trade-remedy measures that could eventually draw in other WTO members as complainants. Canada challenges ‘America First’ approach at WTO Canada has …
The European Commission published the bulk of the text of the EU Japan Economic Partnership Agreement in early December last year. Below some highlights of the pact and some comments – result of your truly’s Christmas break reading. The deal favours significantly EU exporters and is relatively unambitious in services.
Not surprisingly, Moscow has announced that it plans to fight efforts by the EU to slap 1.39 billion euros in trade sanctions on Russia for failing to lift a ban on European pork and pigs. If the EU convinces World Trade Organization judges that Russia continues to flout global trade …
The new year begins rather slowly, but with optimism that the EU and Mexico will soon manage to clinch their updated trade deal. The eighth round of talks will be held this week in Mexico after the two sides failed to secure the modernised accord before Christmas. Following the …
Welcome back to our A week in Brussels Friday column! Happy New Year! The first week of the year is generally quiet when it comes to policy and trade in Brussels and elsewhere. This week hasn’t been different. But here, a few useful things garnered over the break for …
Happy New Year, dear subscribers! The year 2018 will offer a very narrow window of opportunity to bring key EU trade policy files forward. On the EU’s plate this year: finalise trade negotiations with Mexico and Mercosur, get key trade agreements with Singapore, Vietnam and Japan through the European …
