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发帖数: 5125 | 2 EU Is Ready to Fight Back Against China's Growing Trade Dominance
By Lyubov Pronina , John Follain , and Slav Okov
May 2, 2018, 8:00 PM EDT
Bloomberg survey of EU28 shows investment screening is coming
Even those with reservations favor a debate on China strategy
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Europe is set to tighten controls over foreign investment, a sign of growing
wariness of China’s efforts to use its $11 trillion economy to become a
dominant global power.
A Bloomberg survey of the European Union’s 28 member states found that at
least 15 governments actively or tacitly support draft legislation that
would screen investments from outside the bloc. With a majority prepared to
wave it through, the proposal is on course for passage by the European
Parliament, the bill’s next step to becoming law.
How China Bought Up A Swath of Europe When Nobody Was Looking
The results show that Europe is waking up to the risks and not just the
benefits of inward investment, predominantly from China. A Bloomberg audit
found that China has invested at least $318 billion in Europe over the past
decade, from critical infrastructure to high-tech companies -- more than in
the U.S. over the same period.
Nine member states are fully behind the proposals and at least another six
won’t oppose them, according to the survey
Europe’s pushback reflects a dilemma shared by governments worldwide as
they grapple with China’s growing global clout. U.S. Treasury Secretary
Steven Mnuchin is leading a delegation to Beijing this week amid disputes
over trade, reciprocal market access and China’s state-driven economic
model.
As the U.S., Japan and Australia adopt rigorous screening programs, Europe
risks becoming “the shop of last resort” for those seeking advanced
technologies, the European Council on Foreign Relations warned in a December
report.
Taking Know-How
Italy is among those pushing for tighter screening “because we believe that
trade must be fair and investment must be productive,” Sandro Gozi, Italy
’s junior minister for European affairs, said in an interview. “We have to
assess whether investment by non-EU countries aims to do business, to
promote growth, to create jobs in Europe, or whether it’s just aimed to
acquire and then take the know-how of our businesses away from Europe.”
The EU proposal would create a centralized database of past foreign
investments in Europe and an alert mechanism for future ones, leaving the
ultimate power of approving deals with individual governments. The EU
Parliament’s international-trade committee, however, intends to vote on
amendments that could give the bill more teeth. After that, the spotlight
will shift to the deliberations among EU governments.
For Bulgaria, which holds the EU’s rotating presidency, the proposal “is
one of our trade policy priorities,” the Economy Ministry said in an
emailed response to questions. The draft regulation doesn’t envisage
obligatory screening, but rather “its purpose is to establish a mechanism
for cooperation and coordination among member states” whereby countries
applying screening should inform the others, it said.
As Trump Baits China, Europe’s Island Gateway Lures Its Money
Last year, when the EU first floated an investment screening mechanism,
China called on the bloc to observe World Trade Organization rules and avoid
discriminatory investment policies. It also says its signature Belt and
Road infrastructure program benefits everyone, noting that leaders of most
EU countries have expressed interest in signing up.
The survey revealed splits among governments, with countries such as Finland
insisting the bloc avoid any resort to protectionist measures and others
like Malta saying that small economies must remain open to investment. The U
.K. and the Czech Republic were among those to stress that any curbs should
be imposed at national level without recourse to the EU. Yet all those
surveyed welcomed the debate.
“There is a sea change of perception” toward China, said Francois Godemont
, director of the Asia program at the European Council on Foreign Relations.
He cited a “wave of investments” for having fueled the shift, along with
an inability of the EU and China to resolve their respective market issues
to date. In addition, he said, an awareness of political change in China
including the removal of term limits has “soured the mood.”
All the same, the EU commission proposal “is already pretty much a
compromise because it’s not legally binding,” Godemont said.
Europe’s approach is tame compared to President Donald Trump as he pushes
his “America First” trade agenda, threatening protectionist barriers
against allies and adversaries alike. The White House has said it would
forge a “trade coalition of the willing” to stand up to China for what it
calls unfair trade practices. It’s also railed against China’s program to
become the world leader in a slew of industries by 2025.
To read more about the risk of a trade war with the U.S., click here.
China’s global ambitions, including a push to dominate artificial
intelligence, are causing consternation in Berlin and Paris: Chancellor
Angela Merkel and President Emmanuel Macron have both made China’s rise a
policy priority. Macron has pledged to seek more strategic coordination with
Germany on the issue. Merkel plans her own visit to China later this year.
Even EU state traditionally more skeptical of a bloc-wide policy approach
are paying heed.
Hungary is ready to debate investment screening so long as it doesn’t
result in different standards among EU members, Gergely Gulyas, vice
president and parliamentary leader of Hungary’s ruling Fidesz party, said
in an interview.
“If we have a common China policy, we are ready to be part of it,” he said.
— With assistance by Alan Crawford, Jonathan Stearns, Andre Tartar, Aaron
Eglitis, Andra Timu, Milda Seputyte, Esteban Duarte, Jasmina Kuzmanovic,
Eleni Chrepa, Wout Vergauwen, Peter Laca, Amanda Billner, Jonas O Bergman,
Marek Strzelecki, Peter Levring, Alex Morales, Joao Lima, Raine Tiessalo,
Georgios Georgiou, Ott Ummelas, Marton Eder, Dara Doyle, Peter Flanagan,
Jonathan Tirone, and Daniel Ten Kate |
