EU trade chief plans China visit amid soaring tensions with Donald Trump

Bilateral grievances sure to be on the agenda, although problems between Europe and US could provide space for positive discussions

Reading Time:3 minutes

In recent years trade ties between the EU and China have frayed, with Europe frustrated by Beijing’s unwillingness to acknowledge and address the industrial overcapacity in its system. Photo: Shutterstock

Published: 1:02am, 27 Feb 2025Updated: 8:43am, 27 Feb 2025

The European Union’s trade chief Maros Sefcovic intends to visit China at the end of March, according to people familiar with the plan.

It will mark his first trip to Beijing as commissioner for trade and economic security and comes after a maiden visit last week to Washington, where he made initial contacts with the Trump administration’s top trade and commerce officials.

Sefcovic, a veteran commissioner who took on a new portfolio in December, will meet with Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao. Wang invited the Slovakian to China earlier this year, but it is understood Sefcovic delayed because he wanted to visit the US first.

Now that this has been completed, Sefcovic is ready for a sit-down with Wang to discuss the many grievances in the bilateral relationship.

Maros Sefcovic, the European Union’s trade and economic commissioner, is a former Slovak diplomat. Photo: Reuters

In recent years trade ties have frayed with Europe frustrated by Beijing’s unwillingness to acknowledge and address the industrial overcapacity in its system. Brussels claims that this results in cheap exports arriving in the EU and endangering local industries.

Finbarr Bermingham

Finbarr Bermingham reports on Europe-China relations for the Post. He joined the newspaper in 2018, initially on the Political Economy desk reporting primarily on global trade, economics and geopolitics. After a decade on the trade beat in London and Hong Kong, he took up the role of Europe Correspondent, moving to Brussels to report from the heart of the EU. Having helmed the US-China Trade War Update, a weekly podcast, since 2019, he is the current host of the China Geopolitics Podcast.

scmp poll

Before you go

EU trade chief plans China visit amid soaring tensions with Donald Trump

Bilateral grievances sure to be on the agenda, although problems between Europe and US could provide space for positive discussions

Opinion | How China can use US-EU split to hasten more multipolar world

Huawei named by Belgian authorities in brewing European Parliament bribery scandal

Trump threatens tariffs on European wine and spirits in escalating trade war