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China-EU

Since 2012, China has been trying to get the European Union to agree to initiate bilateral free trade agreement talks. China is absent from both the transpacific (TPP) and the transatlantic (TTIP) trade deals and wants "in" on a similarly large pact itself in order to avoid losing out on trade flows or to have to follow new "global" standards set by others. European firms, for their part, want greater openings into China and a more even playing field with domestic companies, especially State-owned enterprises.

In March 2014, Brussels agreed that once an EU-China investment treaty is concluded it will consider broader trade talks with Beijing. The investment treaty negotiations began just a few months prior, in November 2013. Once finalised, this BIT willl replace the 26 existing BITs that China has signed over the years with individual EU member states.

The EU is China’s largest trading partner, while China is the EU’s second export market.

July 2014
Photo: European External Action Service - EEAS / CC BY-NC 2.0


China-Germany-EU leaders’ meeting charts course for development of ties amid COVID-19 pandemic
During the meeting, the Chinese and EU leaders stated their commitment to speeding up the negotiations of the China-EU Bilateral Investment Treaty to achieve the goal of concluding the negotiations within this year.
Are EU-China trade relations at a crossroads?
European leaders were angry about Xinjiang camps and the Hong Kong crackdown. A long-awaited EU-China summit produced sharper rhetoric but nothing substantive as the bloc struggles to find a coherent approach to China.
Merkel says EU put pressure on China over investment agreement
European Union leaders told Chinese President Xi Jinping to speed up negotiations to conclude a China-EU investment deal.
Crucial EU-China summit faces challenges
EU aims at accelerating and concluding the negotiations on an ambitious investment agreement by the end of the year.
EU nations breaking rules in bilateral trade deals with China
Fifteen EU member states have breached bloc-wide rules in agreeing bilateral commercial deals with China as part of Beijing’s ambitious belt and road initiative.
Why China’s diplomatic push may not be enough to secure EU investment deal
Despite a recent charm offensive by senior Chinese diplomats, the chances of wrapping up a landmark investment deal with the European Union remain uncertain, analysts said.
First bilateral trade agreement signed between EU and China
The first significant bilateral trade agreement has been signed between the European Union (EU) and China this morning, Monday, July 20.
Sieren’s China: EU-China summit doesn’t resolve issues
As Brussels and Beijing struggle to agree on climate protection and trade, the coronavirus pandemic has exacerbated their differences. The longer the two sides talk, the more China benefits.
Europe-China summit shows investment deal should not be expected anytime soon
The 22nd EU-China summit had its purpose in moving the two sides closer to a long-negotiated investment agreement, but instead revealed the scope of tensions and differences that dominate the relationship.
No progress on trade, investment, Hong Kong as EU wraps-up tense China summit
Europeans are especially concerned about market access, the forced transfer of technology imposed on foreign firms operating in China, the subsidies offered by Beijing to its companies, the unbalanced relation in the public procurement market.