Why China Cannot Escape the Economics of Self-Sufficiency
China’s aim for greater self-reliance is becoming increasingly credible. Beijing’s new five-year plan doubles down on technological self-reliance just as rapid advances in strategic industries,...
Towards a More Realistic EU China Debate
One major focus of autumnal Brussels trade and industrial policy conversation will be relations with China and the belief that protection is needed to avoid economic doom. Much of this debate...
Beijing Is Not Coercing Spain: Madrid Is Providing the Influence for Free
In 2025, Spain became one of the primary targets of Chinese investments in Europe, with EV-related commitments up 147 per cent – third in Europe – anchored by CATL’s €4 billion battery...
China Brings Trade Law to Cybersecurity
What EU cyber attachés and trade counsellors need to know about CSA2 and the WTO. In a rather unusual move, the Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) of the People's Republic of China filed its formal...
Why China’s Record Trade Surplus can’t be Blamed on US Restrictions
This op-ed originally appeared in het Financieele Dagblad. As China’s record-breaking trade surplus exceeded $1 trillion this year, it intensified not only global trade tensions but also renewed...
The Battle for Regulatory Leadership in the Indo-Pacific: From 2016 Rule-Writing to Today’s Multipolar Reality
In the Indo-Pacific, trade agreements have never been just about tariffs. They are vehicles to set standards and rules; to decide who sets the templates for digital trade, state-owned enterprises,...
Reviewing the Digital Markets Act: Inspirations from Japan
The European Commission is in the process of reviewing the Digital Markets Act (DMA), the flagship ex-ante competition regulation introduced a few years ago to manage digital platform competition. It...
Rethinking Europe in a New Global Economic Landscape: Finding Answers Must Start by Reflecting Our Own Position
Fear of China and despair at US unreliability extending into coercion can be felt across Europe. At worst this extends to the scenario of economic destruction through systematic cheating accompanied...
H20 Back in the Chinese Market: Washington’s Calculated Adjustment
By Hao Wu, research assistant at ECIPE Timeline Made with time.graphics NVIDIA’s H20 GPU resumed sales to China as the company announced Washington’s decision on July 15. The unexpected move...
The WTO in the Age of Trump’s Trade Bullying – Should There Be WTO Reform?
Something doesn’t add up. In Geneva, countries continue to profess undying commitment to the WTO. Meanwhile, their governments back home scramble for deals with Washington – deals which undermine...