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2025
China's record $300 billion surplus: exports double imports
The EU trade deficit in trade with China reached a record $300 billion in 2025. Chinese exports to Europe are more than double imports.
Against this background, the EU is preparing the largest policy revision in a decade towards China: measures to protect industries, a center for economic security, conditions for investment, restrictions against "cheap imports."
As of December 2025, Germany is losing more than 10 thousand industrial jobs per month.
China imposes tariffs of up to 42.7% on some EU dairy products
In December 2025 China , it imposed duties of up to 42.7% on some dairy products from EU after an investigation into subsidized exports.
2024
EU imposes barrage duties on electric vehicles from China, as local companies are not able to compete
The EU from July 4, 2024 introduced import duties on electric cars from China, the EC said in a statement.
"The individual duties applicable to the three selected Chinese producers are as follows: BYD: 17.4%; Geely: 19,9%; SAIC: 37,6%".
"Other electric car manufacturers who cooperated in the investigation but were not included in the sample are subject to a weighted average duty of 20.8%, companies that did not cooperate in the investigation are subject to duties of 37.6%."
According to the source, the new duties "will be added to the 10% already in force for many years, since we are talking about duties in connection with subsidies." This means in practice that import duties on some Chinese electric cars in the EU can be up to 50%.
Continued decline in China's trade with the EU
2023
China's trade decline with the EU by 7.6% in 11 months to $716 billion
Trade China with the EU in January - November 2023 fell by 7.6% to $716.34 billion.
China lifts trade restrictions against Lithuania
In November 2023, it became known that China was lifting trade restrictions against Lithuania. The "economic coercion" regime, which was challenged in the WTO, including the exclusion of Lithuania "from the customs system so that no business can export products to China," has ceased, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielus Landsbergis said. Despite the fact that the blocking of goods has already been lifted, the business still fears to conduct trade with China, he said.
Decline in trade with Germany
China is losing its importance as a market for German exporters, with data showing a steady decline in its share of total exports, a trend that will continue as Berlin and Beijing reevaluate their economic ties.
In the first half of 2023, exports to China amounted to only 6.2% of the total German exports - the lowest share since 2016.
The emergence of China as a market economy in the 2000s gave a powerful boost to German companies and has since contributed greatly to the overall state of Germany's economy. However, this growth driver for Europe's largest economy will weaken in the coming years.
3x jump in imports from Italy
In a little more than a year, according to the results of February 2023, Italy's exports to China tripled. The problem is that even experts find it difficult to explain why.
In February, the volume of supplies to China exceeded 3 billion euros (3.3 billion) dollars , which is 131% more than a year earlier. That followed another 137% jump a month earlier. For comparison, in January 2022 Italy , exported goods and services worth about 1 billion euros to economy No. 2 in the world.
2022
Trade with the EU exceeded 800 billion euros
EU trade deficit with China at 800 billion euros
Trade surplus with Germany and Italy doubles
Finance Minister Christian Lindner is concerned that Germany's economy is becoming too dependent on China and has called for closer trade ties with democracies to counter the addiction.
"Dangerous development: Germany's trade deficit with China more than doubled in 2022," Lindner wrote on Twitter.
"We have to learn from the experience with Russia." Germany "urgently" needs to rethink the situation and focus on freer trade with "valuable partners."
China's trade surplus with Italy has also soared.
Take-off of rare earth metal supplies to the EU for the production of military equipment and electronics
The main railway route for freight trains passes through the territory of Russia, which carry rare earth metals from China to the West, necessary in the production of microchips, electronics and other modern military equipment.
EU data shows that Russian railways are a key conduit for strategic metals. China supplies more than 90% of the volume of rare earth metals used in the EU. For nine months of 2022, the volume of railway supplies through Russia increased to 36 thousand tons, which is twice as much as for the entire 2021. At the same time, raw materials were transported, among other things, by Russian Railways trains, despite the company's inclusion in the EU sanctions list.
The EU and the United States are the largest export destinations from China
2021
China's rapid trade growth with the EU
China strikes Lithuania off its customs register for cooperating with Taiwan
In early December 2021, China deleted Lithuania from the customs register, Lithuania will no longer be able to issue its goods through Chinese customs.
Vilnius requested help from the European Union, consultations are underway with the European Commission on the EU's reaction to the decision of the Chinese authorities.
 | Lithuania is excluded from the customs system, it seems that there is no such country in the Chinese customs system. This creates additional problems for exporters because they cannot send the remaining amount of cargo, said the president of the Lithuanian Confederation of Industrialists Vidmantas Janulevicius. |  |
Relations between the two countries are in crisis due to the opening of a representative office in Vilnius on November 18. Taiwan
2020: For the first time in history, China has become the EU's largest partner
Eurostat: for the first time in history, China in 2020 became the largest trading partner of the European Union, ahead of the United States.
In 2020, EU trade with China reached €586 billion ($711 billion) compared to €555 billion ($673 billion) for the United States.
2013: China's large trade surplus with the European Union
One of China's largest foreign trade partners is the European Union.
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