Facing Europe’s ever-widening trade deficit with Beijing, Berlin is increasingly singing the same tune as Paris. The two nations displayed a united front at this year’s Franco-German Ministerial Council, which will soon be put on paper in a joint road map due by September at the request of Germany. “Our work between Germany and France is indispensable at a time when Russia threatens our security, when the People’s Republic of China challenges our economy, and when the transatlantic partnership...
China told the European Union that it is willing to increase purchases of EU goods to help pare a massive trade gap, potentially easing the risk of a trade war. Commerce Minister Wang Wentao suggested that China is open to purchase agreements covering European goods in trade talks this week with EU trade chief Maros Sefcovic, the South China Morning Post reported, citing unidentified people briefed on the discussions. Lower tariffs on EU imports were also discussed (see trade talks joint...
The European Union set an October deadline for “tangible results” in tackling its growing trade deficit with China, after the two sides held talks in Brussels in an attempt to avoid a trade war. “Not everything will be solved, not everything will be fixed, but we think that between now and October, our teams have sufficient time to deliver the tangible results,” EU trade chief Maros Sefcovic told reporters on Monday, according to Bloomberg News. He spoke after “intensive, focused and...