
EU Trade Chief Maros Sefcovic will meet Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao in Beijing for two days of negotiations, with Brussels hoping for a modest 'proof-of-concept' arrangement despite a widening trade surplus and low expectations for significant rebalancing.
AI-generated summary
The EU and China have struggled to rebalance their trade relationship, with Beijing maintaining a large surplus. Previous talks in Brussels set an October deadline for signs of progress.
The European Union’s top trade mandarins depart for Beijing on Wednesday for two days of intensive negotiations but expectations in Brussels are measured as to what the talks will deliver.
Maros Sefcovic, the EU’s trade chief, will meet his Chinese counterpart Wang Wentao on Thursday and Friday – three months after their last encounter in Brussels, when the Europeans set an October deadline for signs of a rebalancing in the trading relationship.
Non-stop working-level talks have proven difficult, with the lopsided trade balance showing little sign of narrowing. Indeed, Beijing’s enormous trading surplus with the 27-member bloc has expanded further in the intervening quarter.
However, Beijing is believed to no longer outright reject the suggestion that there are problems in its trade ties with Europe.
AI outlook — possibilities, not facts
EU and China will agree to a modest 'proof-of-concept' arrangement during the Beijing talks
Possible · Within days

Speaking at the Milken Institute Asia Summit 2026 in Singapore, Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan warned that the global landscape would remain unsettled if the United States and China fail to address their domestic issues, emphasizing Singapore's need to maintain trust with both superpowers without serving as a proxy for either amid their difficult relationship.

A missile attack on Kyiv killed two people on Wednesday, according to the mayor, following President Zelensky's warning of massive Russian strikes targeting the city. Residents sought shelter in subway stations with bedding and supplies after military alerts were issued for Kyiv and other regions.

Israel commemorated the third anniversary of Hamas' October 7 attack with silent tributes at sites like the Nova music festival and Kfar Aza kibbutz, while conducting new strikes in Gaza despite a ceasefire, as Gaza officials reported at least two deaths from overnight strikes.

Since the United States and Israel launched air strikes on Iran on February 28, and Iran launched attacks on US military bases in Persian Gulf countries, the conflict between the United States and Iran has entered its eighth month. U.S. President Trump said that the biggest problem he faces now is that no one knows who is in charge of Iran now. Iran's former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamini was allegedly killed in an airstrike, and his son Mujtaba took over but was injured and did not appear in public. A spokesman for the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs accused US officials of contradictory positions and mixed messages.

The FBI arrested 34-year-old Chinese-American female real estate agent Zhang Wanying at the Los Angeles Airport on suspicion of receiving instructions from the Chinese government to monitor Lai Ting, the eldest son of Taiwan President Lai Ching-te, and a Taiwanese elected official who made strong anti-CCP remarks. The indictment shows that Zhang met with a Chinese official and discussed the official's address, which was concealed in the document.

The German economy has long been dependent on the Chinese market, which has often hindered the EU's tough policies toward China in the past. But as China's dumping of cheap goods threatened German industry, Germany's policy changed. Süddeutsche Zeitung commented that Beijing has long used a "carrot and stick" divide and rule strategy against member states. Although Germany is worried about retaliation, it is promoting new mechanisms with France to reduce the influence of individual countries on EU decision-making, aiming to weaken Beijing's differentiation strategy.