Credit Agricole: EU-China Trade Imbalance and Strategic Dependence Are Deepening - FJElite

China’s trade surplus with the EU continues to widen as Chinese manufactured exports grow faster than European exports to China. The largest imbalances are concentrated in electrical equipment, machinery, automobiles and e-commerce-related goods.

At the same time, the EU is becoming more dependent on China for critical minerals, batteries, magnets, solar products and other strategic inputs, raising economic-security concerns. The likely response is a mix of dialogue, targeted trade-defence measures, procurement rules and supply-chain resilience policies, but China retains significant capacity to retaliate through export controls and restrictions on commercial cooperation, increasing the risk of further trade tensions.