China – Regionalism and Multilateralism
The history of international economic cooperation teaches us one important lesson: every form of cooperation will die – essentially if not formally – if it does not adapt to new conditions for...
Railways Derailing EU-Japan Talks?
Since the mid-2000s, the EU has made the opening of public procurement markets one of its key priorities in the WTO and in the bilateral agreements it negotiates with the US and Japan. In this...
One Country, Two Internets: China and Hong Kong
Shenzhen, also known as China’s Silicon Valley, is located less than 30 km north of Hong Kong. As a leading ICT capital, Shenzhen’s economic growth is gradually catching up with Hong Kong –...
The Costs of Data Localization
In the aftermath of recent revelations on mass-scale electronic surveillance, there has been a widespread proliferation of internet restrictions. One of the most drastic, yet a common policy response...
More Threats to European Way of Life (part 3): Movies on Smartphones.
No rest for the wicked – after declaring war on books and taxis, it took the Hollande government less than a week to come back with a new tax on something digital. This time, the crosshair is on...
The Health and Future of China-EU Trade Relations
I was asked by a big Chinese news agency to provide a short comment on the health of China-EU trade relations. Here it is: Trade growth between China and the European Union in the past ten years has...
Desert Island FTAs: How the CJK Agreement and the Territorial Dispute Actually Co-exist
If you believe the Western press, we are approaching a major conflict over the Senkaku islands or Diaoyus, depending on who you side with. There is little interest for an outsider to have an...
Trade, Regulations and TPP
The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), the twelve-country trade initiative, is often billed by United States to be a “gold standard” trade agreement for the 21st Century. It should usher trade...
Rethinking Taiwan: How the EU Should Follow China Into a Trade Agreement
A year ago, deepening trade relations between Taiwan and the EU was seen as a far-fetched goal for the EU. It was formally never considered for a FTA with Europe, despite being one of the wealthiest...
A New Approach for EU-China Trade Policy
What will happen to trade relations between China and the European Union (EU) in the next few years? China’s rise to preeminence in world trade has been a source of economic growth for...