13 April 2016 / MEP Jongerius, Vice-Chair of the EP Employment Committee, wrote an opinion article for Dutch newspaper De Volkskrant arguing that as Chinese products, like steel, are heavily subsidised, the EU needs anti-dumping measures to ensure a level playing field. She concludes that for the sake of fair trade and fair competition, China should not be granted market economy status. Read full article here (in Dutch).

11 April 2016 / Around 45,000 German steelworkers and managers took to the streets in Duisburg to protest cheap steel imports from China. Sigmar Gabriel, German Economy Minister, addressed the crowd stating, "We have nothing against China getting market economy status but only if it behaves like a market economy." Read the full Deutsche Welle (DW) article here.

7 April 2016 / The European Parliament's Industry, Research and Energy (ITRE) Committee held a discussion on the possible implications for EU industry of granting Market Economy Status (MES) to China. The debate was opened by ITRE Chair MEP Jerzy Buzek and introduced by DG Trade Director Leopoldo Rubinacci. A number of MEPs voiced their concerns regarding the impact of granting MES to China, a country that does not operate under market economy conditions. Mr Rubinacci then closed the debate by responding to the questions and comments raised by MEPs. Watch the full debate here (02:00-53:00).

5 April 2016 / The European Economic and Social Committee's Consultative Commission on Industrial Change (CCMI) organised a Public Hearing on “Granting Market Economy Status to China” on 5 April 2016 from 2:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. The hearing was part of the preparation of an own-initiative opinion on the same subject. Ines Van Lierde conveyed AEGIS Europe's views as a speaker on the first panel. Further information is available on the EESC website.

5 April 2016 / In the context of the UK steel crisis, MEP David Martin recommends that the EU "be more cautious" when dealing with China. He continues, "Of course China is an important world player and greater economic cooperation can bring benefits to both sides. However, we must make sure our relations are based on a level playing field. [... This] means refusing to grant China what is called "Market Economy Status" (MES) at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) under the present circumstances. Doing so would further threaten the impact that our trade defence measures can have in protecting our industry and jobs from unfair competition." Read the full article here.

30 March 2016 / Ambrose Evans-Pritchard, International Business Editor of The Daily Telegraph, writes a compelling piece about the UK's relationship with China and its effects on the ongoing steel crisis. The article addresses the EU's deliberation on China's 'market economy status' (MES) and the report by the Economic Policy Institute which warns that unilateral MES for China would put almost all the EU's 350,000 steel jobs at risk. Evans-Pritchard concludes: "If this is correct, and if allowed to run its course,  Europe would be finished as an industrial and military region. It would be civilisational suicide." Read the full article here.

29 March 2016 / Robert A. Manning, senior fellow of the Brent Scowcroft Center on International Security at the Atlantic Council, wrote a commentary on China's market economy status for the Nikkei Asian Review. He warns that granting this status to China "could cost several million jobs in Europe and the US" and quotes AEGIS Europe as saying, "Europe cannot grant Market Economy Status (MES) to a country that does not merit it." The article also takes a closer look at trans-Atlantic relations and the role of the G-7 in this debate. Read the full article here. A version of this article, entitled The China Market Status Dilemma, was published on Foreign Policy on 30 March. 

18 March 2016 / In a guest blog post on Euractiv, AEGIS Europe spokesperson Milan Nitzschke highlights that the European Commission's current options in the debate on China's MES lack an option offering "accurate implementation of WTO law by treating any economy as a market economy, only if it is a true market economy – and by treating any non-market economy as such – and for the period of time it remains so. (...) It is time that the European Commission reviews its options and presents a proposal that can be properly implemented, transparently communicated and based on the principles of a sustainable and long-term partnership with China." Read the full blog post here. 

17 March 2016 / Opened quietly in February, the European Commission’s ‘Public online consultation concerning a possible change in the methodology to establish dumping in trade defence investigations concerning the People’s Republic of China’ does not help ensure open debate about one of the most important issues facing European industry: the granting of Market Economy Status (MES) to China.

16 March 2016 / A group of leading U.S. manufacturing associations today announced the formation of a new coalition, Manufacturers for Trade Enforcement, to oppose China’s designation as a market economy at the end of 2016.

15 March 2016 / Today a group of MEPs announced the launch of a "counter-public consultation" on the Market Economy Status of China. The European Commission opened a public consultation on 10 February but it does not contain any space to provide free-form answers and is currently only available in English. By contrast, the counter-public consultation includes open-ended questions and is available in five languages.

14 March 2016 / The Socialists and Democrats in the European Parliament have adopted a position paper with demands and proposals to ensure fair conditions are upheld in the European Union's trade policy towards China. The group also calls for a strategy to engage the EU's partners in the World Trade Organisation (WTO) to make sure that China is not granted full 'market economy' status before it actually complies with the rules.

2 March 2016 / On 2 March the EPP Group organised a discussion in the European Parliament in Brussels with EPP MEPs from both the INTA and ITRE Committees and stakeholder representatives on the possibility and consequences of granting China Market Economy Status (MES).

27 February 2016 / The Economist reports on China's oversupply, and the fact that its huge exports of industrial goods are "flooding markets everywhere, contributing to deflationary pressures and threatening producers worldwide". The article dissuades China from exporting its overcapacity as "the flood of cheap goods onto foreign markets has already exacerbated trade frictions", as exemplified by the protest in Brussels on 15 February for free and fair trade and against granting China Market Economy Status. Read the article here (subscriber-only).

22 February 2016 / Both US Presidential hopefuls campaigning for the Democratic nomination warn against closer trade relations with China. On his campaign website, Bernie Sanders states his firm belief that “current trade relations with China are detrimental to job growth” in the US and highlights that “a growing trade deficit with China has led to the loss of over 2 million US manufacturing jobs since 2001”. In this recent article, Hillary Clinton explains that she is opposed to granting market economy status to China because “if they get market economy status, it would defang our anti-dumping laws and let cheap products flood into our markets. (…) China is far from a market economy. If China wants to be treated like a market economy, it needs to act like one.”

22 February 2016 / The New York Times reports, "The failure of Chinese leaders to tackle the problem of excess industrial production has intensified an economic slowdown in the country and threatens to wreak havoc on global markets, [the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China] said in a new report on Monday. (...) “Without a sustained effort to address it now, overcapacity may well seriously impede the effectiveness of China’s economic reform agenda,” said Joerg Wuttke, president of the chamber." Read the full article here.

22 February 2016 / The Financial Times' Lucy Hornby reports on the European Chamber of Commerce in Beijing's warning that "China’s crushing overcapacity risks inflaming trade tensions as well as swamping the country’s companies with debt". Jörg Wuttke, president of the European Chamber, told reporters in Beijing that China "can’t outgrow this problem any more” and that “politicians need to realise that [Chinese] overcapacity leads to job losses, which leads to protectionism in Europe.” Read the article here (subscriber only).

22 February 2016 / Deutsche Welle (DW) writes about a report recently released by the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China which warns that Chinese overcapacity is preventing the country's economic reform and damaging its trade relations. The EU industry is notably impacted, as visibly demonstrated in a march attended by 5,000 employers and employees on 15 February in Brussels. Read the full article here.

22 February 2016 / Reuters covers the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China's report on Chinese overcapacity, which "has got much worse since 2009, with Beijing struggling to implement reforms and overcome the resistance of growth-obsessed local governments". Read the full article here.

21 February 2016 / The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reports that the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China called for Beijing to ramp up efforts to tackle excess production. This overproduction is harming eight key industries including steel, cement and chemicals, but is having knock-on effects in consumer sectors such as consumer electronics, pharmaceuticals, food and apparel. Journalist Laurie Burkitt highlights the industry march in Brussels to protest granting Market Economy Status (MES) to China, which would only worsen the situation. Read the article here (subscriber only).