General

For China Europe's economic and trade cooperation, the increasing attractiveness of cooperation and the decline of the EU's business environment are to some extent like two sides of a coin - in the past year, against the backdrop of repeated delays in the global epidemic and slow recovery of the world economy, China Europe's bilateral international trade, economic and investment cooperation has shown good momentum. In 2022, the total bilateral trade in goods reached 847.3 billion US dollars, an increase of 2.4% year-on-year. China and the EU are each other's second largest trading partners; Chinese enterprises have invested 7 billion US dollars in the EU, and their investment stock in the EU has reached 102.9 billion US dollars.

However, at the same time, the decline in the business environment of the European Union in 2022 poses significant challenges to foreign-funded enterprises. The "EU Business Environment Report 2021/2022" released by the Research Institute of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade on March 29th showed that 33.04% of surveyed enterprises believe that the EU business environment is deteriorating, an increase of 5.86 percentage points compared to the previous year.

Zhao Ping, Vice President of the Research Institute of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, stated that China Europe cooperation is related to the stability of the global landscape and the prosperity of the Eurasian continent. We look forward to the continuous improvement of the business environment in the EU, and foreign enterprises playing a greater role in promoting EU economic growth and employment, creating broader space for international trade cooperation between China and Europe

2022 EU Business Environment Decline

Zhao Ping stated that since 2022, China Europe relations have maintained overall stability, with frequent high-level exchanges and close communication on international issues, bringing a relatively stable cooperation environment for both sides' enterprises. China and the European Commission jointly prepared the updated version of the Common Classification Catalogue of Sustainable Finance and jointly built a green finance cooperation mechanism; Positive progress has been made in the cooperation of major projects between China and Europe; China and France unanimously agree to accelerate the implementation of the fourth round of demonstration projects for third-party market cooperation; The cooperation between China and Europe on geographical indications has achieved practical results, with a total of 244 geographical indication products recognized and guaranteed by both sides.

However, in the past three years, there have been some twists and turns in China Europe relations. From the report, Chinese companies in Europe believe that the EU market remains attractive, but in 2022, the business environment in the EU has declined, posing significant challenges to foreign companies. Among them, the EU is constantly adding new policy tools, increasing market access barriers, and enterprises are facing dual challenges of market access and localized operations. The survey shows that 45.64% of surveyed companies believe that EU market access barriers have increased, and 40% of surveyed companies have changed their investment plans due to EU foreign investment review; 61.4% of surveyed companies believe that the EU and some member states have a tendency to politicize economic issues; 34.21% of surveyed companies stated that there is significant uncertainty in their cooperation with EU companies.

Zhao Ping introduced that in response to the problems in the business environment of the European Union, Chinese enterprises in Europe have put forward ten suggestions, including resuming the approval process of the China Europe Comprehensive Investment Agreement as soon as possible and promoting the early signing of the agreement; Recommend that the EU uphold the basic principles of the World Trade Organization, such as reciprocity, transparency, market access, fair competition, and non discrimination; Conduct bilateral dialogue and consultation on foreign investment review, foreign subsidy regulations, international procurement tools, etc., eliminate interfering factors, and jointly promote the stability and development of China Europe international trade relations.

A good business environment is a common expectation of foreign enterprises and will also generate greater attraction for Chinese enterprises. According to the survey, if the EU relaxes its foreign investment review, 28.7% of Chinese companies surveyed will expand their investment in Europe; If the China Europe Comprehensive Investment Agreement is signed and implemented, 40.87% of the surveyed Chinese enterprises will increase their investment in Europe.

China Europe Economic and Trade Cooperation Has Broad Space

2023 will be a very important year for China Europe relations. Recently, high-level officials from various European countries have sent some very positive signals: first, Spanish Prime Minister Sanchez has taken the lead and stated that he is about to visit China; French President Malone and European Commission President von der Leyen also seek to visit China in early April; In addition, it is reported that Borrelli, a senior official in charge of foreign affairs of the European Union, and Italian Prime Minister Meloni are also interested in visiting China.

"The China EU high-level dialogue will continue to promote the stability and long-term development of bilateral economic and trade relations. China EU friendly cooperation is the trend of the times. There are no geopolitical contradictions or fundamental conflicts of interest between China and the EU. There is huge space for cooperation between the two sides in sustainable development, green finance, digital economy, multilateral cooperation and global governance." Zhao Ping said. In Zhao Ping's view, China Europe economic and trade cooperation has a solid foundation, with complementary economic structures and broad common interests in many fields. There is broad space for future China Europe economic and trade cooperation.

She further analyzed that China and the EU have broad prospects for jointly building the "the Belt and Road" in international trade. In 2022, despite the global shortage of sea and air transportation capacity, China Europe Express continued to operate a total of 16000 trains and send 1.6 million TEUs of goods, with year-on-year growth of 9% and 10%, respectively. China and leaders of EU members such as Poland, Luxembourg and Malta have reached consensus on high-quality joint construction of the "the Belt and Road" and the "Silk Road in the Air", and the joint construction of the "the Belt and Road" has become a popular international public product and international cooperation platform.

At the same time, there is enormous potential for cooperation between China and Europe in the fields of green and technology. China and Europe share broad common interests in addressing climate change and environmental protection, as well as common positions on global goals such as overall emission reduction and maintaining a green ecosystem. Strengthening cooperation in the field of science and technology between China and Europe not only has a solid foundation for cooperation, but also conforms to the actual benefits of both sides. In the future, both sides will accelerate the implementation of research and development projects, the establishment of cooperation mechanisms, and the cultivation of scientific and technological talents in fields such as agriculture, food and biotechnology, as well as climate change and biodiversity.

In addition, win-win development can also be promoted through third-party market cooperation, "Zhao Ping said. As of September 2022, China has signed third-party market cooperation agreements with EU members such as France, Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Austria, and has established diversified cooperation platforms such as working groups, cooperation forums, cooperation funds, and steering committees. The industrial chains of China and Europe complement each other and have a high degree of economic compatibility. Conducting third-party market cooperation will help fully leverage the comparative advantages of both industries and promote deep integration in the international trade market