Academic literature on the topic 'China-EU trade relations'

This paper will discuss the economic relations between the European Union and the People?s Republic of China. The introductory part will make an insight into the position of China in the contemporary global economy. The following part of the paper will analyze China-EU trade relations. The topics included will be a general overview of these relations since their establishing in 1975 as well as the European Union?s attitude towards the Chinese WTO membership. The Sino-EU partnership and competition will also be described and it will be followed by an overview of the Sino-EU High Level Economic and Trade Dialogue (HED). The concluding topics in this part of the paper will include Sino-EU trade flows, perceived obstacles to trade and investment as well as recent trade disputes between two trading partners. The third part of the paper will deal with Sino-EU investment flows (with an emphasis on Chinese investments in EU member states). After the introductory remarks concerning the EU investments originating from China, the paper will shed light on particular EU member states which are preferred for Chinese investment as well as the industries in which Chinese companies are willing to invest. The concluding part of this paper will offer possible development of relations between the EU and China in the near future.

China and the European Union are very interested in developing their mutual relations. They strengthen their positions in the world business by their co-ordinated acting. In their mutual relations, they apply Geoeconomics? methods. They do not regard each other as a military threat but as one of the main economic partners. Their economies are highly complementary. ?The common economic interests? have a decisive role in China EU policy and EU China policy, respectively. EU is China?s largest economic partner. It is its largest export market, the largest source of new technologies and equipment and one of the largest sources for foreign investments. China is the second important source of industrial products import to EU and the fastest growing export market for EU. The EU enlargement to the East both favourably and unfavourably affects China?s interests. The main cause of friction in China-EU relations is a high Chinese surplus in their mutual trade, high competitiveness of Chinese products on the EU market and China?s pursuit of energy sources in the parts of the world that Western countries, including the leading EU member states, regard as traditionally ?forbidden? such as the Middle East and Africa. China and EU have created mechanisms to settle conflicts of interest in their mutual trade through dialogue.

Over the last two decades, ties between China and the EU have developed into one of the most dynamic bilateral relationships in the global economy. The EU is China’s important trading partner and growing amounts of European investment are pouring into the booming Chinese economy. European companies believe that more open, democratic and law-abiding China will be a better partner. On the other hand, China wants to learn from the European experience and is keen to have access to the EU’s wide market. Those are reasons why both partners try to find better ways to communicate on the global stage. The goal of the article is to identify directions of future cooperation between the EU and China and to explain their aims for the relationships. The Author also gives an impression of how they see each other policy and provides an overview of what is still the main part of bilateral relations.

In order to overcome the disadvantages of the existing two types of economic systems - the socialism and capitalism, there was a need to find a system that will use the positive aspects of both systems. Оne country succeeds more than successfully to combine bases of the centrally planned and market system. Socialism in the Chinese style, as it is called by Gregory and Stuart proved to be a successful practical example of the market socialism. After the implementation of China's reforms, they have kept a one-party system and state ownership, but have accepted the market allocation of resources. In the Constitution of the People’s Republic of China, Chinese economy is voluntarily classified as a socialist market economy. That China is more than a successful example of market socialism, is shown by the remarkable growth rates and the unprecedented progress of the country in the last thirty years.Reforms have enabled the opening of China to foreign trade, which before 1978 was almost non-existent. After the establishment of the first diplomatic relations with the EU, in 1985 the Agreement on Trade and Economic Cooperation EEC and China was signed, which officially begins establishing bilateral trade relations. Special importance for the progress of trade relations is China's entry into WTO in 2001, and the signing of the strategic partnership of the EU and China in 2003. The volume of trade between the two economies is growing steadily, and the main characteristics of their trade relations is a continuous deficit which the EU has realized in the exchange with China. Although the European Union is the largest trading partner of China, and China is the second trading partner of the EU, differences and difficulties in the field of trade still exist.

The aim of the study is to evaluate the potential role of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) for promoting EU – China trade, and especially Poland – China trade. We test two hypotheses: 1) Non-tariff barriers (NTBs), particularly related to railway transport, are significant for Poland – China trade, and 2) Poland – China trade fits railway transport well. Therefore, we start with a study of the significance of tariff and non-tariff barriers in mutual trade relations, including transport-related barriers. NTBs are mainly derived from the EU Market Access database, and as for transport-related barriers – the logistics performance index (LPI) is used. As the next step, we study the composition of bilateral trade in static and dynamic terms using the OECD TiVA database. In the light of the significant increase in NTBs on EU manufacturing products exported to China and the railway transport infrastructure performance in Poland, the BRI could become an effective tool for improving the business environment for EU exporters. By contrast, the BRI project is more suitable for China and the EU as a whole than for Poland in terms of commodity structure of bilateral trade.

From the middle of 90’s, the bilateral trade between China and Europe and Central Asia (EU-CA) has become more important in the world trade. In 2013, the Chinese government introduced its new economic policy, the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), which opened a new are of the world trade’s history. This paper is attempt to measure strength and nature of bilateral trading relationship between China and EU-CA. Furthermore, we are looking for the answer how the BRI is affecting on the studied countries’ economies. Many statistical indices can be used to measure international trade relations. This paper has used one such index such as trade intensity. Trade intensity indices have been calculated for the period from 1997 to 2017. Described intensity indices of bilateral trade relations, both countries will help determine how intensively countries that trade with each other. Thus, this study found that intensity between two countries is high and the BRI did not increase the trade intensiveness between China and EU-CA as we were expecting.

AbstractThis article re-examines the theories of recognition and non-recognition in the context of the evolving framework of the European Union (EU)’s trade and investment relations with Taiwan from legal and international relations perspectives. Notwithstanding its one-China policy, the EU has developed a pragmatic approach to engaging Taiwan under bilateral consultations and World Trade Organization negotiations that have built the foundation for the bilateral investment agreement (BIA). The article argues that since the 1980s, the EU has accorded diverse forms of recognition to Taiwan and the BIA will buttress the process. To substantiate the contention, the article systemically explores the political and trade policies of European states and EU institutions in line with their strategies toward cross-strait relations.By deciphering the new momentum that has galvanized the European Commission’s strategy towards the EU-Taiwan BIA, the research sheds light on the implications of European Parliament resolutions and the EU’s investment talks with China. The structure and impact of the BIA are also analysed in light of EU investment protection agreements with Singapore and Vietnam. Hence, the findings contribute to the interdisciplinary study of international law and international relations and enhance the understanding of the EU’s Asia-Pacific trade and investment agreements.

In this research work, Author focus on the analysis the need to establish a new format for trade-political relations between European Union and People Republic of China. What indicates the importance and innovativeness of the research is the presentation of the technical progress especially in China, the growth of economic ties with the European Union and the benefits resulting from liberalised of the China foreign trade policy under WTO. Realistic point is important trends in the trade regime between EU and China. Their commercial relations are too important to become hostage to political grandstanding or airy rhetoric by politicians performing for domestic galleries. Europe is China’s largest export market, and China now ranks second on Europe’s list of key trading partners. Trade with China dwarfs any other trade relation Europe has with emerging Asia. Disturbing this relationship would have ramifications for sales, growth and employment. The Chinese government is less concerned today about Western criticisms of China’s autocratic system, but the Chinese people have grown more nationalistic and represent a potentially greater threat to commercial relations. Commercial interests in autocratic regimes cause political dilemmas. The main aim of the paper is the presentation the need to establish a new format for trade political relations between European Union and China.

Relations between the EU and China are of global importance, and these ties are likely to expand in the coming years. Analyzing the trade relations between the EU and China in 2009-2018, the author notes their activation and at the same time the growth of instability and imbalance. The main purpose of this article is to answer the question, what are the success factors and problems of cooperation in the field of mutual trade, in order to identify the conditions that can play an important role in the process of strengthening bilateral ties between China and the European Union. According to the author, China and the European Union, taken together, can become engines of a more cooperative approach to world politics, global stability and regional economic prosperity.

The aim of this thesis is to analyze China-EU trade relations with focus on the period after 1975, when the diplomatic relations between China and EU developed. The research questions are (i) what is the driver in the development of China-EU trade relations? This question is subdivided into two questions: how do economic factors impact on China-EU trade relations and how do political factors influence China-EU trade relations? (ii) what are the existing problems in the current China-EU relations? (iii) what are the future prospects?

To carry out the research questions and fulfill the aim of the paper, a qualitative and quantitative method has been chosen in order to interpret and understand China-EU traderelations. The theoretical framework of this study is neo-realism and neo-liberalism with particular attention focusing on political issues and economic issues respectively.

A number of conclusions can be drawn from research. First, China-EU trade has developed very rapidly. Trade relations between the two sides are good. They are the third largest traders with each other. Secondly, the momentum for the development of China-EU trade relations is rooted in their common interests in both the political and economic fields. Thirdly, the prospect of China-EU trade relations is promising. These factors include (i) the establishment of a foundation to promote the healthy development of China-EU trade (for example, a set of legal framework provides both sides with the legal basis for their economic relations); and (ii) the prediction of future political and economic environment as favorable to the development of China-EU trade relations.

All factors show optimistically that China-EU trade will continue to prosper. The China-EU trade relationship is not without friction and the author theorizes that there are some potential danger factors; such as the Taiwan issue and trade disputes that may shadow the future development of China-EU trade relations and cannot be overlooked. At the end the author puts forward four suggestions to promote the further development of China-EU trade relations: (i) maintain the existing high-level of exchanges such as the annual EU-China summit; (ii) set up a warning mechanism to prevent trade disputes escalating; (iii) provide a method for establishing negotiations; (iv) prevent the politicizing of trade relations, for example, do not connect human right issue with trade relations. Unrelated issues should be addressed separately.

The contingent trade protection is one of the legitimate trade instruments under the WTO. In this regime, EU is one of the most frequent users with imports from China as the biggest target. The bilateral trade relations in this area become highly controversial due to the additional commitments China made upon its WTO accession. The thesis investigates this significant dimension of the bilateral trade relations through specific case studies in the sector of textiles and clothing and in terms of China’s additional WTO commitments seeking a competent and effective paradigm for the transitional contingent system in the future.

The EU’s Trade Relations with China (1975-2008):

A Linkage Power at Work?

(Summary)

The central aim of this thesis is to improve our understanding of the EU’s power, in particular in its external trade relations/negotiations. Our hypothesis is that the EU is a distinctive kind of linkage power, defined as an actor relying on linkage as a crucial modus operandi in its external relations. We explored how, to what extent and in which distinctive ways the EU is such a linkage power.

Our analysis was based on three logically interrelated concepts – power resources, linkage and linkage power. Linkage refers to a leveraging strategy, with an aim of packaging relevant power resources, so as to increase leverage in bargaining, or more generally attain a policy objective. I identified seven types of linkages that the EU used: political-economic issue linkage, economic-economic issue linkage, conditionality, contextual linkage, linkage with a third party, cognitive linkage and synergistic linkage. Linkage can hardly work without proper power resources. The latter, as Dahl (1970) defined, refers to all the resources-opportunities, acts, objects etc – that an actor can exploit in order to affect the behaviour of another. So, linkage is a bridge between power resources and impacts – meaning affecting or changing the behaviour of another party. By putting linkage and power together, we created a new term – “linkage power”, referring to a power based on linkages. The EU, the US, China or any other power can all be such labelled, though these actors may diverge in power resources, linkage strategies and the variables affecting linkage effectiveness. When applying such an analytical framework to the EU, we gave particular attention to the implications of the EU’s sui generis nature on its linkage power.

Our case study is the EU’s trade relations with China (1975-2008), which were punctuated by two critical historical junctures – the Tian’anmen Square Incident in 1989 and the EU-China Textile Crisis in 2005. In 1975, The EEC’s successful strategy by linking political issues (Europe-China balancing the Soviet Union and recognising China’s sovereignty over Taiwan) with economic issues (signing the EEC-China Trade Agreement) played a crucial role in securing the establishment of diplomatic relations between the EEC and China. Different types of linkages were then applied to the EEC’s negotiations with Beijing on the 1978 Trade Agreement and the 1979 textile agreement, which effectively prompted the Chinese side to agree to the EU’s terms.

Immediately after the 1989 Tian’anmen Square Incident, the EC imposed economic sanctions with an aim of coercing China to accept Western world’s human rights conditions. This linkage did not last long or pay off due to divergent political and economic interests among the Member States and the EC’s institutional handicaps (foreign policy competence was largely in the hands of Member States, collective foreign policy action was non-binding), and soon de-linked.

Having realised that confrontational approach did not work well, the EC/EU and its Member States started to change their China policies in 1993-95. The period of 1993-2004 witnessed the EC/EU’s power through partnership. The strategic partnership was seen as a complex of different pairs of issue linkages, ranging from political-strategic issues to economic and human rights issues. The partnership, once established, had fostered new linkages and consolidated old ones. China’s WTO accession was seen as a once-in-a-century opportunity for the EU to exercise linkage through conditionality, so as to extract market access concessions from the Chinese side. Moreover, by linking with China could the European Commission garnered international support for advancing the Galileo project within the Union and ward off some of the US pressure in 2003.

The Year 2005 was singled out since an unprecedented trade row on textiles broke out, confronting the EU against China’s export prowess resulting from globalisation and China’s WTO accession. Linkages were used as a predominant strategy to help the EU to persuade and press the Chinese side firstly accept voluntary export restrictions and then share the burden of allowing the blocked textiles in European ports to be released. In 2006-08, the trade deficit problem emerged, coupled with a series political spats between Europe (France and Germany) and Beijing on the Tibet issue. As the EU-China honeymoon was over, the Commission toughened its approach towards China. Although linkage was again used to redress the trade deficit, its effects were not satisfactory, as the EU power resources were eroded.

Our conclusions are (1) linkage is a crucial modus operandi in the EU’s internal bargain and its external relations with China; (2) Linkage was generally effective vis-à-vis China, but with variations, either over time or across different linkage types; (3) The EU is a sui generis linkage power, resulting from its institutional characteristics and heterogeneity of interests among the Commission and Member States. We find that the EU’s increased institutionalisation (both regional and bilateral) and competences generally facilitated its use of linkage strategies. The EU’s sui generis structure and its internal interest divergences have mixed implications on its linkage effectiveness. On one hand, the EU’s linkage power was weakened accordingly. But on the other, the Commission could tactically make use of some Member State government’s row with Beijing and advance its own economic agenda (such as the EU-China High-level Economic and Trade Dialogue, HED). Moreover, our research also confirmed Andrew Moravcsik’s argument that issue linkage is more easily made within an issue-area than across issue-areas. But we differ from him on the reason behind that. We find that this was largely attributable to the EU’s pillar structure and competence divisions.

The theoretical contributions include: (1) Linkage power provides a distinctive prism to look into the EU’s concrete strategies in internal bargains, and external commercial negotiations. Linkage serves as a crucial strategy for the EU to handle its relations with a far-abroad country like China, including establishing diplomatic relations, negotiating trade deals, forging strategic partnerships and holding high-level dialogue. (2) Giving some insights to the EU’s actorness. We find that the EU, though institutionally not a unitary actor, was somehow able to present its power to the extent like a sovereign state on some occasions using linkage strategies. (3) Contributing to the understanding of the EU’s means to spread its governance model. We find that the EU’s norm-setting goals have often been achieved through non-normative ways – such as interest exchange and trade-off, and other deliberate ways of persuasion and even coercion, mainly based on linkage. (4) Shedding light on the interactions between the Commission and the Member State governments and on the Commission’s autonomy in external trade relations.

Two future directions of research have been identified: (1) comparative studies: the EU’s linkage practices vis-à-vis the US, Russia and middle powers, or other actors’ linkage strategies vis-à-vis China; (2) post-Lisbon linkage strategies used by the EU.

Doctorat en Sciences politiques et sociales
info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

The thesis deals with the issues of economic cooperation between China and the Euroepan Union. Particular emphasis is given to the economic relations which are presented in the results of economic cooperation from 1975 until present. Whereas the mutual relations cannot be almost purely considered as a resultant economic variables, the issue is supplemented by international political questions which are closely related to the issue as well. The observed economic data are used to analyze the strengths and weaknesses of economic relations of China and the European Union and threats and opportunities arising from them.

Malgré l’amélioration du régime des droits de propriété intellectuelle (DPI) en Chine après l’accession de celle-ci à l’Organisation mondiale du commerce (OMC) en 2001, la question relative aux DPI demeure l’un des « sujets de vive préoccupation » dans le commerce sino-européen. Selon la stratégie européenne visant à assurer le respect des DPI dans les pays tiers, adoptée en 2005 et renouvelée en 2014, la Chine est ciblée par la Commission européenne comme le premier pays tiers dans lequel les autorités locales ne prennent pas de mesure efficace pour s’attaquer aux problèmes de violations des DPI. En raison des enjeux politiques et économiques importants pour l’UE, son intervention est nécessaire pour améliorer le régime des DPI et l’environnement de l’investissement en Chine. L’analyse de l’action extérieure de l’UE s’appuie sur l’étude des instruments auxquels elle recourt en vue de renforcer la protection et le respect des DPI en Chine. L’objet de notre recherche est d’examiner la manière dont l’Union choisit d’exploiter les instruments à géométrie variable au sein des enceintes multilatérale et bilatérale. Deux axes distincts mais complémentaires orientent la mise en œuvre de l’action extérieure de l’UE vis-à-vis de la Chine : l’approche coopérative, d’une part, et de l’approche conventionnelle, d’autre part. L’approche coopérative vise d’abord à rapprocher le régime juridique chinois des standards les plus élevés du droit de l’UE. En dépit d’un certain nombre de difficultés limitant l’efficacité de l’action extérieure de l’UE, la coopération bilatérale avec la Chine permet de contribuer à l’amélioration du régime juridique chinois. La convergence normative devrait ensuite faciliter l’apparition d’une approche commune entre l’UE et la Chine sur le plan conventionnel. Il importe à cet égard de souligner la position divergente de la Chine face à la promotion de l’UE, par la voie conventionnelle, d’un renforcement de la protection et du respect des DPI. Malgré la convergence accrue des positions européenne et chinoise favorables à la protection « ADPIC-plus » des DPI, la Chine se montre réticente voire hostile envers les initiatives conventionnelles de l’UE tendant à renforcer les mesures relatives au respect des DPI
Despite the improvement of China’s intellectual property rights (IPR) regime after this country’s World Trade Organization (WTO) accession in 2001, the IPR remains one of “major concerns” in Sino-European trade relation. According to European strategy for the enforcement of intellectual property rights in third countries, adopted in 2005 and renewed in 2014, China is identified by the European Commission as first priority country, in which the local authority does not take effective measures to tackle the problems caused by IPR violations. Taking into account the EU’s important political and economic concerns, his action is necessary in order to improve the IPR regime and the investment environment in China. The analysis of EU’s external action is based on the instruments used to strengthen IPR’s protection and enforcement in China. The purpose of our research is to examine the EU’s method to use the different instruments within the multilateral and bilateral fora. Two distinct but complementary axes orientate the undertaking of EU’s external action vis-à-vis China: cooperative approach, on the one hand, and the conventional approach, on the other hand. Firstly, the cooperative approach aims to bring Chinese legal system closer to higher standards in EU law. In spite of certain difficulties limiting the efficacy of EU external action, the bilateral cooperation with China can contribute to a better legal system in China. Then, the normative convergence should be able to facilitate the emergence of a common approach between the EU and China in the conventional framework. In this respect, it is important to emphasis Chinese divergent position with regard to EU’s conventional approach aiming to strengthen IPR protection and enforcement. Despite the increasing convergence of European and Chinese positions favorable toward “TRIPs-plus” protection, China seems reluctant even hostile to EU’s conventional initiatives intending to strengthen IPR enforcement measures

碩士
淡江大學
歐洲研究所碩士班
103
EU diplomatic relations with China were established in 1975 and bilateral trade agreement was signed in 1978, then EU-China trade relations grew stronger through the days. However, China, with high GDP growth during the past decades, becomes a great economic power in the world, and EU, infecting by the European sovereign debt crisis, gets disadvantaged in economy and trade status. The trade relations between EU and China have been changed. European sovereign debt crisis also makes huge impacts on EU-China trade relations, including the growth of the trade deficit had been reduced in recent years, Bilateral trade disputes grew much tension and influenced more industrial areas, and EU’s foreign direct investment from China had increased rapidly. In the future, China, with a growing situation of consuming power, is definitely a needed ally for EU to export in recovering its economy. On the other hand, EU will remain as China’s important source on importing techniques and services for its economic transformation. In summary, EU-China trade relations should become much stronger and closer.

AbstractThe Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), while primarily a security organisation, has always included economic and human baskets or dimensions. Currently, the Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities operates in four main areas: (1) good governance and anti-corruption, (2) money laundering and financing of terrorism, (3) transport, trade and border-crossing facilitation, and (4) labour migration. This chapter addresses developments in Central Asia since the dissolution of the Soviet Union that are relevant to the third area of OSCE operations. The chapter’s focus is on the potential for the landlocked Central Asian countries to become land-linked, using improved transport connections between East Asia and Europe to promote economic development through export diversification and growth. Rail services across Central Asia improved considerably during the 2010s. They have been resilient, despite strained political relations between Russia and the EU since 2014, and rail traffic between Europe and China continued to increase in 2020 despite the shock of COVID-19. Further infrastructure improvements are promised under China’s Belt and Road Initiative. However, the expanded network has been little used by Central Asian producers to create new international trade, and the improved infrastructure represents a potential opportunity rather than a past benefit. If the Central Asian economies are successful in taking advantage of the opportunity, it will stimulate their trade across the Eurasian region and help economic diversification. The main determinant of success will be national policies and national economic development. The chapter concludes with a discussion of the role of multilateral institutions and, in particular, the prospects for OSCE collaboration with existing fora to promote cooperation and economic development in Central Asia.

Geographically Mongolia has two neighbors. Mongolia’s existence today depends largely on mutually friendly relationships with two big neighbors. The main pillars of Mongolia’s new international strategy were incorporated in Mongolia’s National Security Concept adopted on June 30, 1994. This document, approved by the Mongolian Parliament, emphasizes a balanced policy towards the country’s two giant neighbors, underlines the importance of economic security in protecting Mongolia’s national integrity, and warns about too much dependence on any one country for trade. In today’s world of globalization and interdependence, Mongolia has to engage with other countries beyond these two neighbors, Russia and China. This is fundamental thing of the Mongolia’s searching third neighbor. Mongolia needs more friends to ensure its national security interests and achieve economic prosperity its ‘Third Neighbor Policy’1 is a policy of extending its friends all around the world. Two immediate neighbors of Mongolia, Russia and China, remain the foreign policy priority and this priority is not contradictory to the policy of having more friends. Mongolia is becoming an arena of clashes of economic interests of developed countries, multinational corporations due its rich mining deposits. Mongolia's Third Neighbor Policy is aimed to leverage the influence of neighboring countries in the national security issues of Mongolia. In contrast with other satellite states of the former Soviet Union, Mongolia concurrently instituted a democratic political system, a market-driven economy, and a foreign policy based on balancing relations with Russia and China while expanding relations with the West and East. Mongolia is now pursuing a foreign policy that will facilitate global engagement, allow the nation to maintain its sovereignty, and provide diplomatic freedom of maneuver through a “third neighbor” policy. 2 This policy is very much alive today but there is no reason to claim that its implementation is satisfactory. Mongolia has major investors from the US, Japan, Germany and France from the EU, for example. There are many universal conventions related to landlocked country. For Mongolia, access to sea via our two neighbors, means promoting economic ties with the third neighbors, as an important factor conducive to reinforcing the material foundations of Mongolia’s third neighbor policy.