European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen warned China on August 27, 2026, that the EU would deploy trade defence measures if negotiations failed to address a record €1 billion-per-day trade imbalance. The warning escalates pressure on Beijing to rebalance the bilateral relationship.
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European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen warned China on Thursday that the EU is ready to use trade defence measures if negotiations fail to reduce a record trade imbalance, telling French business leaders at Medef that dialogue “must produce results” [euronews.com#1][euractiv.com#1][euractiv.com#2][iltempo.it#1]. The Commission has set an October deadline for reaching an agreement with
The European Commission's president said that the EU’s trade relationship with China had to be rebalanced, and pointed out that the bloc's trade defence investigations into Chinese products had ramped up significantly in recent years.