New head of EU trade department inherits China challenge
May 29, 2026
| Cynthia Kroet
Ditte Juul Jørgensen will take over as the European Commission's director-general for trade on Monday, inheriting a growing agenda that includes responding to China's industrial overcapacity, addressing mounti... (more story)
EU probe of JD.com-Ceconomy is first test of Chinese M&A distortion
May 29, 2026
| Lewis Crofts, Andrew Boyce and Nicholas Hirst
JD.com is the first company to test the EU’s long-held concern that Chinese state influence is distorting dealmaking on European soil. But enforcers face a complicated task, unpicking the alchemy of deal valua... (more story)
How far will Brussels go to shield EU industry from Chinese overcapacity?
May 27, 2026
| Cynthia Kroet
As the European Commission weighs measures to counter Chinese overcapacity and reduce strategic dependencies, the question is how far Brussels is willing to go. Divisions among member states and Europe’s conti... (more story)
Trump-Xi summit projects stability, but US-China challenges remain
May 21, 2026
| Bradley Dress
President Donald Trump’s high-stakes visit to Beijing last week projected stability to the difficult trading relationship with China but offered little else, with the fragile truce still in place and existing ... (more story)
US manufacturers look to Section 301 to supplement duty orders
May 20, 2026
| Eliana Hubacker
US manufacturers are hoping Section 301 tariffs will fill a perceived enforcement gap that traditional duty orders have failed to address. Witnesses at a recent government hearing on the matter included repres... (more story)
Xi, Trump sidestep chip curbs while reviving AI security talks
May 20, 2026
| MLex Staff
Discussion of chip export controls was notably absent from the recent Trump-Xi summit, reflecting in part Beijing’s reduced urgency to secure relief from US curbs as China accelerates its push for technologica... (more story)
Xi-Trump summit shows a rivalry being managed, not resolved
May 20, 2026
| MLex Staff
Chinese President Xi Jinping’s question to Donald Trump about whether the US and China can escape the “Thucydides Trap” framed a summit that showed the two powers are learning to manage competition rather than... (more story)
EU exporters face headaches in recovering costs of nixed US import tariffs
May 18, 2026
| Cynthia Kroet and Bradley Dress
European companies are exploring the recovery of costs linked to US tariffs struck down by the US Supreme Court in February. Consultancies and law firms are assessing demand for claims, MLex has learned. While... (more story)