Global economy and trade policy
Explore recurring issues in Europe’s relationship with its extended neighbourhood, and economic relations with China, India and the rest of the world
Europe’s global economic relationships have been complicated by the adoption of tariffs and subsidies by China and the US, often in contravention of World Trade Organisation rules. On the other hand, the change in UK government may present an opportunity for increased engagement with the UK, including on energy security, defence production and climate policy.
Under the 2024/2025 research programme, Bruegel fellows explore EU economic security policy in the context of a resurgent China, the protection of rules-based international trade and economic relations between the EU and major world powers, particularly the US, the UK and India.
Recently published
Global trade conflict: opportunity for the EU
Russian foreign trade tracker
Tracking Russian trade using data from the EU, China, the US, South Korea, Japan, India, the UK, Turkey, Switzerland, Norway, Brazil and Kazakhstan
India-China rapprochement: what are the long-term prospects?
Despite signs of cautious improvement, India-China relations remain deeply strained by border tensions and mutual distrust
EU-UK trade and the Trump effect
What’s in the new EU-UK trade agreement and how does it fit with the tariff threats from Washington?
Which companies are ahead in frontier innovation on critical technologies? Comparing China, the European Union and the United States
In this paper, we study who is engaging in frontier innovation in AI, semiconductors and quantum computing in China, the US and the EU
China's presence in the Eastern Mediterranean
A closer look at China's strategic economic footprint in the Eastern Mediterranean and the lessons it holds for the EU
Radical novelties in critical technologies and spillovers: how do China, the US and the EU fare?
In this paper we analyse the evolution of frontier innovation in quantum computing, semiconductors and artificial intelligence in China, US and EU
Talent grab: can the EU attract US scientists and innovators?
Ways for Europe to seize the moment and win over top-tier researchers
China economic database
Repository of what we consider to be the most relevant macroeconomic data for China and EU-China relations.
Events
Indo-Pacific and Europe: growing partnerships in support of rules-based trade order
How should the EU and the Indo-Pacific region cooperate for a resilient trade order?
Talks@Bruegel: The Trump Administration’s economic policy with Stephen Miran
How are US tariffs shaping the global economy, and what role can US-EU cooperation play going forward?
Lessons from the Euro crisis and EU-US relations between crises, shared values and geopolitical tension
What does the future hold for the transatlantic partnership?
Podcasts
Europe’s autonomy amid the US-China trade clash
As trade tensions between Washington and Beijing intensify, where does that leave Europe?
How the war in Ukraine is reshaping EU-China relations
How the war is influencing Europe’s strategic and economic ties with China and Russia
Is China headed for its own ‘lost decade’?
Comparing China and Japan’s economic slowdowns
China's growing influence in the Western Balkans
Why economic security could be another reason to accelerate the Western Balkan's EU accession process