China announced it is banning exports of dual-use items to 14 European Union entities, including German defense company Rheinmetall, effective immediately. The move is in direct retaliation for the EU's latest round of sanctions against Russia that penalized 14 Chinese enterprises.
The European Union has halved its duty-free steel import quota to address overcapacity concerns, but reached agreements with more than a dozen countries including the UK for better individual rates than the baseline reduction.
The European Union and China have agreed to enter three months of negotiations aimed at resolving their massive trade imbalance and avoiding escalating trade tensions. The talks, formalized in their first joint statement in seven years, will focus on the bloc's €360bn annual import/export deficit with China, with an October deadline set for tangible results.
The European Union introduced a €3 customs charge on small parcels and low-value e-commerce imports effective July 1, 2026, ending the tax-free exemption for purchases from platforms like SHEIN, Temu, and AliExpress. The European Commission says the measure aims to prevent the 'desertification' of European high streets and address unfair competition from Chinese online retailers.
A decade after the UK voted 52%-48% to leave the European Union on June 23, 2016, the country faces economic headwinds and political instability, with economists agreeing Brexit has weighed on growth. New surveys show two-thirds of EU citizens would support Britain rejoining, while most UK voters say Brexit has been bad for issues they care about.
European leaders and G7 nations are responding to concerns about a flood of cheap Chinese exports threatening key industries, echoing fears of the original 'China shock' that disrupted Western manufacturing. The issue has become a central topic at the G7 summit as countries weigh policy responses to growing trade imbalances.
Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Guoqing will participate in a rare video conference hosted by French President Emmanuel Macron with G7 countries on Thursday to discuss global trade imbalances and low-priced Chinese exports, as Germany signals potential tougher trade measures.
The British government, led by Sir Keir Starmer, proposed creating a single market for goods with the European Union as part of Brexit reset negotiations, but the EU rejected the idea. The proposal was made by Britain's chief negotiator Michael Ellam and would have represented a significant shift in post-Brexit relations.
