EU Trade Commissioner to begin China trip | Photo: EPA

The EU’s trade chief will meet with his Chinese counterpart in Beijing from today until September 24.

EU Trade Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis will meet with Vice-Premier He Lifeng, who is responsible for China’s economic affairs. The two will try to address the EU’s grievances regarding bilateral trade. These include China’s massive trade surplus, the country’s large subsidies for domestic industries, its stronghold over critical raw materials and its rapidly growing electric car exports to the EU.

The EU recently proposed an economic security strategy, which seeks to protect European industries and technologies deemed strategically important. Beijing will be keen to address Brussel’s concerns to help boost China’s declining exports. In return, Brussels will want greater access to the Chinese market.

Dombrovskis’s trip is the first in a series of high-level EU visits to China. In October, The EU’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, will meet with his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi. They will discuss the terms for an upcoming EU-China Summit between Xi Jinping and the EU’s top leadership, expected to take place in November.

This week’s negotiations between Dombrovskis and He will likely not achieve a breakthrough, but both sides will want to reach an initial agreement on strengthening bilateral economic cooperation and enhancing trade going forward.