12 August 2016 / This is the English translation of Italian News agency ANSA's article on the consequences on EU-US relations of the ambiguous EU position on trade with China.

12 agosto 2016 / L'eventuale decisione della Commissione europea sullo status di economia di mercato della Cina dopo il chiaro rifiuto di Washington potrebbe avere pesanti conseguenze sulle relazioni Ue-USA, ha dichiarato all'ANSA Alberto Forchielli - finanziere ed economista italiano.

25 July 2016 / European trade union industriAll published a reply including questions for the European Commission following the College of Commissioner's orientation debate on 20 July on EU trade with China. Read the full press release here. 

20 July 2016 / European industry greeted today’s announcement of Commissioners that the EU will not grant China MES - and that the EU would apply a new non-standard methodology for dealing with anti-dumping calculations for imports from China - with cautious relief. 

At the same time, European industry expressed unease because there was no clear statement that the EU would continue to link its trade defense measures on imports from China to the EU’s 5 market economy criteria.

20 July 2016 / On Tuesday 19 July, ETUC – BusinessEurope published joint declaration on China’s Market Economy Status expressing concerns on what the expiry of Section 15 subparagraph (a)(ii) on China’s accession to the WTO could mean for the EU. Full text of the declaration can be found on ETUC and BusinessEurope websites.

18 July 2016 / On Wednesday 20 July, the College of European Commissioners will debate the future of Europe’s entire manufacturing industry when it discusses if China should be granted Market Economy Status (MES).  

15 July 2016 / Reuters reported that the U.S. warned China during a WTO Council on Trade in Goods meeting  that it had not done enough to qualify for market economy status, especially in steel and aluminium. Read the full article here.

Brussels, Thursday 14 July 2016- Following the EU-China Summit in Beijing on 12 – 13 July, AEGIS Europe, a grouping of nearly 30 European manufacturing associations, says that European leaders must not let down European industry and its workers by giving into China on Market Economy Status (MES). ‘Concessions’ on steel dumping are not justification for the granting of the much-coveted status.

14 July 2016 / The European Economic and Social Committee issued a press release to warn against granting China market economy status (MES) and to call on the European institutions to promote fair international competition and actively defend European jobs and European values with efficient trade defence instruments (TDIs). Read the full press release here.

11 Luglio 2016 / In vista del Vertice UE-Cina a Pechino il 12-13 luglio, AEGIS Europa, un'alleanza di oltre 30 associazioni manifatturiere europee, invita il Presidente della Commissione europea Juncker e il Presidente del Consiglio europeo, Donald Tusk, aprendere una posizione chiara contro il dumping, l'eccesso di capacità produttiva e sovvenzioni illegali cinesi.

11 July 2016 / Ahead of the EU China Summit in Beijing on 12-13 July, AEGIS Europe, an alliance of more than 30 European manufacturing associations, calls on European Commission President Juncker and President of the European Council, Donald Tusk, to take a clear position against Chinese dumping, overcapacity and illegal subsidies. 

21 June 2016 / The Wall Street Journal reports that German Chancellor Angela Merkel is losing patience with "China’s shopping spree in Europe as it closes its own markets". While China takes over advanced manufacturing companies in countries like Germany, Western companies are prevented from tapping into Chinese markets. Journalist Andrew Browne writes, "On a visit to Beijing this month, Ms. Merkel called on Chinese authorities to grant foreign firms the same 'rights and privileges' as domestic ones." Read the full article here (subscriber only).

11 June 2016 / In the Post's View, the Washington Post argues the United States not to yield to China's demand to be recognised as a market economy, not least because it is not one. China has built up massive excess industrial capacity by subsidising certain industries. The Editorial Board at WP strongly advises the US not to grant China MES "unless and until China shows irreversible progress on economic reform, including, specifically, its subsidised excess industrial capacity." Read the full article here. 

10 June 2016 / Inside U.S. Trade reports that French Minister of State for Foreign Trade Matthias Fekl confirmed that France is working closely with US officials and within the G7 on the MES China issue. He further emphasised that China is not a market economy and that treating it as such could entail job losses. Read the full article here (subscriber-only). 

2 June 2016 / POLITICO Europe reports that 18 US senators are urging EU Trade Commissioner Malmstroem not to give China market economy status. In a letter dated 27 May, this bipartisan group argues that "labeling China a market economy before it in fact becomes one will thwart global efforts to secure China's compliance with its international trade obligations. [...] We urge the Commission to work with the United States on efforts to secure China's full compliance with its WTO commitments. Only after China has become a market economy should the EU treat it as such." Read the letter here and the POLITICO article here (subscriber only).

25 May 2016 / POLITICO Europe reports that the MES Action group, a European Parliament interest group composed of 70 MEPs, announced today that about 91% of the 6,000 participants who took part in a public consultation earlier this year are opposed to granting granting China market economy status (MES). Read the full article here (subscriber only) or take a look at the presentation of the results of the European Parliament's counter public consultation, #MESChinaWhyNot.

24 May 2016 / The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) and the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) strongly reject the granting of Market Economy (MES) to China.

24 May 2016 / In the run-up to the G7 on 26 May,  the AEGIS Europe alliance has released open letters addressed to European G7 leaders urging them to take joint action against Chinese dumping and Market Economy Status (MES).

17 May 2016 / AEGIS Europe, the alliance of manufacturing industries in Europe, welcomes the initiative of German and French Trade Ministers to promote an effective anti-dumping instrument and to oppose the premature granting of Market Economy Status to China.

12 May 2016 / POLITICO Europe reports on the European Parliament's adoption of the resolution recommending the European Commission not grant market economy status to China. The article states, "While the vote has no direct legal impact, it sets red lines for the Commission, which has to decide before the summer break whether it approves China as a market economy, and which needs the Parliament’s approval for such a decision." Read the full article here.