The European Commission published today its proposal for an EU-US agreement on conformity assessment for industrial products, in line with its commitment to enhanced transparency in trade negotiations. A product exported between the two sides often has to undergo an assessment to demonstrate that it complies with the technical and safety requirements of the importing party, a so-called 'conformity assessment'. This often means additional costs for exporters, which is especially burdensome for smaller companies, who often decide not to export...

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The European Parliament will vote on Ursula von der Leyen’s college of Commissioners next Wednesday 27 November, paving the way for the new Commission to start work on 1 December. The vote will take place during the Plenary session in Strasbourg, following the approval by the Council of the list of 27 Commissioners on Friday 22 November. The UK has declined to nominate a Commissioner before the general election on Thursday 12 December, despite having agreed to do so as...

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As in the rest of the world, European trade and manufacturing have weakened. There are some signs that this slowdown is spreading into the rest of the economy. While services and consumption have remained relatively resilient in line with strong labor markets, investment is starting to lose steam. These developments have slowed economic activity in the region, especially in advanced Europe, according to the IMF’s latest health check of Europe’s economy. The report predicts growth will moderate from 2.3 percent in 2018 to 1.4...

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The results of a special Eurobarometer survey published today by the European Commission show that 60% of Europeans feel that they personally benefit from international trade, 16 percentage points more than 10 years ago at the time of the previous poll. The survey also revealed that 71% of respondents believe that the EU is more effective in defending their countries' trade interests than these countries acting on their own. Commissioner for Trade, Cecilia Malmström said: ”When I took office five...

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