The main EU trade policy items to watch out for this week are: e-commerce, Indonesian FTA, Vietnam FTA and IPA.
EU trade policies
Week in Brussels: Mercosur hoopla, Israel labelling
This week we’ve focused a lot on Australia and New Zealand as well as on internal EU battles over the steel safeguard.
EU Australia FTA: Labour and environmental issues come into focus
Compared to the ongoing free trade agreement negotiation process with New Zealand, the European Union’s trade talks with Australia are advancing slowly. It’s clear Brussels and Canberra are taking the time they need to bridge wide gaps in the way they conceive some international trade and investment issues. One of …
Auto vs steel industry battle intensifies over import safeguard
The European Union is reviewing a safeguard it introduced earlier in 2019 to relieve steel producers from inexpensive imports in a market it feared would be flooded by cheap products in the aftermath of the US’s Section 232 steel import restrictions. The measure pits embattled European steel producers against the …
Dual use export control plans revived as cyber climbs up EU priority list
The European Commission and the European Parliament Member states will be relieved that blockages in the Council over the new version of the EU’s dual use product export control regime were overcome this week as member states finally released their mandate for ‘trilogue’ negotiations towards a new regulations in the …
Long read – Self reliance: the emerging EU trade policy trend in a hostile world
The European Commission no longer seems to trust global norms, fora or rule-making negotiations to uphold its interests in digital, competition, industry and trade policy. In fact many norms hardly exist and won’t likely emerge so quickly. The EU’s executive arm has been rethinking its policy toolkit and is seeking …
Brexit Task Force’s deputy to lead trade department of European Commission
Sabine Weyand is to become next Director General for Trade, replacing the Frenchman Jean-Luc Demarty. Ms Weyand will lead the European Union’s trade bureaucracy after almost three years in a strategic post as deputy to the European Commission’s Article 50 Task force, the team that negotiated a ‘withdrawal agreement’ with …
Comment: Greener or messier EU trade policy going forward?
Will the EU make its trade policy greener in the coming years? If anything, the politics of green trade will become messier, reckons Iana Dreyer.
EU-US : To European leaders voluntary auto export restrictions are taboo
Today’s trade ministers’ meeting was an opportunity to take stock of ongoing European Union-United States files. The gathering took place more than a week after US president Trump postponed imposing duties of up to 25% on imports of autos by six months. The US president however asked for negotiations to …
EU Vietnam agreements – presidency hopes to clear FTA by end June
The Romanian presidency of the European Union is hoping to see the EU Vietnam free trade agreement agreed by member states and ready for signature with Hanoi by the end of June. Bucharest appears less confident a separate investment protection agreement can be agreed by the Council by the same …
