EU Seeks Broader Trade Access to Counter Protectionist Threat

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The European Union vowed to fight to keep global markets open and bolster multilateralism while warning that its companies face greater trade barriers.

The European Commission said 45 new commercial obstacles were put in place last year by non-EU countries, bringing the total number of such restrictions to a record high of 425 in 59 nations. The curbs cost European business billions of euros a year, said the commission, the 28-nation bloc’s executive arm.

The figures released on Monday in Brussels highlight the extent to which the EU’s determination to uphold the World Trade Organization system goes beyond the battle against U.S. President Donald Trump’s protectionism and challenge to the global order.

“In the complex context we have today with a growing number of trade tensions and protectionist measures, the EU must keep defending the interests of its companies in the global markets,” European Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom said in an emailed statement tied to her latest annual report on worldwide commercial barriers. “Making sure that the existing rules are respected is of utmost importance.”

EU leaders will also take up the mantle of global trade this week at a summit in Brussels. They’ll agree that “an effective, relevant and resilient multilateral system must be capable of facing new global realities,” according to a draft of their conclusions seen by Bloomberg.

China and Russia top the list of non-EU countries with “problematic” trade measures in place, with 37 and 34, respectively, according to the commission. Four countries -- China, the U.S., India and Algeria -- are responsible for new barriers with the most impact, accounting for 80% of EU exports hindered by such restrictions, mainly in the steel, aluminum and information technology areas.

Among as many as 35 trade barriers eliminated by the commission last year, in part through WTO arbitration, are:

• Chinese curbs on imports of bovine and ovine products
• Russian duties on vans
• Indian levies on electronic goods and impediments to leather goods
• Japanese restrictions on additives in wine and spirits
• Egyptian barriers to textiles

The commission said that, since 2014, it has won the removal of a total of 123 unfair trade barriers in non-EU countries, enabling more than 6 billion euros ($6.7 billion) in extra exports last year.

To contact the reporter on this story: Jonathan Stearns in Brussels at jstearns2@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Ben Sills at bsills@bloomberg.net, Richard Bravo, Zoe Schneeweiss

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