BRUSSELS, Sept 16 (Reuters) – The European Union will use every possible means to reduce its “unsustainable” trade deficit trade with China, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Wednesday.
Von der Leyen said that the imbalance, with a goods trade deficit of €1 billion ($1.15 billion) a day last year, had reached a tipping point and that Europe was already suffering from the second China shock through deindustrialisation.
EU leaders called on the European Commission in June to produce results from dialogue with China and to ensure the bloc has all the instruments it needed to defend its interests. European Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic, leading the talks, said he wanted to achieve tangible results by October.
Von der Leyen said in her ‘state of the Union’ address to the European Parliament that it was in both sides’ interests to work together to find a solution.
“Let me be clear: we will use all the tools at our disposal to rebalance our relationship. Words are good. But deeds are better,” she said.
Von der Leyen also highlighted the EU’s reliance on China for many critical minerals, notably rare earths.
“We need to urgently procure and build up our reserves,” she said, adding the EU would establish a new European Corporation on critical raw materials to help the 27-nation bloc obtain and stockpile what it needed.
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(Reporting by Philip Blenkinsop)
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