News and analysis on trade policy in Europe
Monday, April 28, 2025
It’s been a pretty packed week. Here other low-key but important developments in EU trade policy. EU Mexico FTA stirrings The EU and Mexico had concluded negotiations towards the modernisation of a twenty year old free trade agreement in April 2018. But that agreement ‘in principle’ left the parties with …
The measure has already been announced this summer. Now it is clearly on its way. One day after the demise of the Appellate Body of the World Trade Organization, Brussels is pulling out its legislative claws in a move aimed at defending its commercial interests if judicial disputes end ‘in …
The overarching question shaping European trade policy outcomes this year will be: what role for international trade and investment law for global business and the work of trade diplomats? This issue will be central in the four major files with which European trade policy will grapple: the future of the …
It’s been an eventful week in Brussels, culminating with the ongoing European Council – which we will cover separately. The fear of US tariffs on autos, that the multilateral trading system will unravel and China, and frustrations at the slow pace of Brexit negotiations (here and here) have all dominated …
Two big countries dominated the agenda on trade in Brussels this week: the United States and China. Both topics are not unrelated. In this regard, a lot happened in the WTO – see Jennifer’s stories here, here and here. Another topic that has kept EU leaders busy is the bloc’s …
The Court of Justice of the European Union ruled today unequivocally that intra-European international investor-state arbitration tribunals are not compatible with EU law. Its summary judgement gives little insight into how it might rule on the compatibility of international investor-state tribunals set up by the European Union with third countries. …
With things suspiciously quiet on both the Mercosur and Mexico trade talk fronts, the biggest news concerning Brussels this week may be coming from Luxembourg, where the Court of Justice rules on the legality of intra-EU bilateral investment treaties. The week’s headlines will most likely be dominated by the looming …
This week was relatively calm in the Brussels policy world. The entire European Commission team flew to Sofia feting Bulgaria as it took over the EU presidency for the next six months, lavishing praise and money on the bloc’s poorest country. Technocrat trade negotiators are far away in Mexico trying to hammer …
The Court of Justice of the European Union ruled today that negotiations to upgrade the so-called Lisbon Agreement, an international treaty on the protection of geographical indications dating back to 1958, and overseen by the World Intellectual Protection Organization, are to be led under the EU’s exclusive competence as part …
Trade ministers gathering informally in Brussels on Friday (13 October 2017) discussed the announcements by Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker in his September State of the Union speech: new free trade agreements, the separation of negotiating tracks for EU-only trade agreements and ‘mixed’ investment agreements, the publication of member state trade …
