As trade tensions between China and the European Union continue to escalate, both sides have set a final deadline in October to push for the resolution of deep-rooted trade disagreements.
After meeting with Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao in Brussels on Monday, EU trade chief Maroš Šefčovič told the media: "Not all issues can be resolved, nor can everything be accomplished, but we believe that from now until October, our teams have enough time to deliver tangible results."
He indicated that both sides will strive to resolve various core issues affecting China-EU economic relations, especially as government-subsidized Chinese goods flood into Europe and Europe's trade deficit with China continues to widen.
According to Xinhua News Agency, a joint statement after the China-EU trade negotiations said that the two sides have agreed to establish a trade and investment consultation mechanism to maintain communication on four working pillars: trade and investment balance, export control, intellectual property, and WTO reform, and have agreed to hold another ministerial meeting this fall.
The statement said that both sides noted positive outcomes from their China-EU export control dialogue around rare earths, other key raw materials, and minerals, and expressed willingness to strengthen dialogue in this area; both sides recognized the need to intensify export control dialogue and agreed to take further facilitation measures.
The two sides also agreed to establish a joint monitoring mechanism to exchange trade data, in order to monitor trade flows in real time and identify any sudden surges in commodity exports.
Last year, the EU’s trade deficit with China reached 360 billion euros (approximately 1.6708 trillion ringgit). Brussels is concerned that Beijing has developed a dangerous bargaining chip over European companies that depend on strategic materials such as Chinese semiconductors and rare earth minerals.
Last Saturday night, the new media outlet "Yuyuan Tantian" under CCTV issued a warning: If the EU insists on treating negotiations as a mere formality, China has the ability to respond to further deterioration—even a freeze—in China-EU economic and trade relations.