Section 1.  Pittsburgh Statement The EU-US Trade and Technology Council (TTC) met for the first time in Pittsburgh on 29 September 2021. It was co-chaired by European Commission Executive Vice President Margrethe Vestager, European Commission Executive Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo and US Trade Representative Katherine Tai. The European Union and the United States reaffirm the TTC's objectives to: coordinate approaches to key global technology, economic, and trade...

Value of G20 merchandise trade at new high in Q2 2021 but signs of easing growth The second quarter of 2021 saw international merchandise trade for the G20, as measured in seasonally adjusted current US dollars, reach a new high following the record levels already posted in Q1 2021. G20 merchandise exports and imports increased by 4.1% and 6.4% in Q2 2021 compared to the previous quarter, showing a slowdown compared with the rates posted in Q1 2021 (8.6% and 8.5% for...

Today, the EU has submitted its proposal seeking the commitment of World Trade Organization (WTO) members for a multilateral trade action plan to expand the production of COVID-19 vaccines and treatments, and ensure universal and fair access. With this proposal to the WTO, divided in two communications, the EU underlines the WTO's central role in the response to the COVID-19 pandemic and urges fellow WTO members to agree on a set of commitments, including on intellectual property rights. President von der...

European Commission Executive Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis, United States Trade Representative Katherine Tai and U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina M. Raimondo today announced the start of discussions to address global steel and aluminum excess capacity. During a virtual meeting last week, the leaders acknowledged the need for effective solutions that preserve our critical industries, and agreed to chart a path that ends the WTO disputes following the U.S. application of tariffs on imports from the EU under section 232. Executive Vice-President Dombrovskis, Ambassador...

7 May, 2021, WASHINGTON | Ambassador Katherine Tai today released a set of transparency principles that establish the foundation for a high transparency standard for the day-to-day operations of the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR).  These Transparency Principles reflect the Administration’s commitment to comprehensive public engagement, including outreach to historically overlooked and underrepresented communities, as it develops and implements a trade policy that advances the interests of all Americans.  USTR will continue to build on these Transparency...

HR/VP Josep Borrell Blog Post | Recently, Executive Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis presented a new trade strategy at the College of the European Commission. EU trade policy can be an important foreign policy instrument: we should leverage our trading power to promote EU interests and values and build a fairer and more sustainable form of globalisation. On 17 February, the European Commission approved a new EU trade strategy, prepared by my colleague Executive Vice-President Dombrovskis in charge of trade, in cooperation with the European...