BusinessEurope Headlines No. 2021-27

Europe in a changing global environment

“We are witnessing a redistribution in global power with the economic and geopolitical centre turning East. This is mostly due to the rise of China, set to become the largest economy in the world by the end of this decade”, said Luisa Santos, Deputy Director General of BusinessEurope at an event organised by the PPMI research and policy analysis centre and the Lithuanian Confederation of Industrialists (LPK) on 20 September on industrial strategy and internationalisation. Santos pointed out that this change in global power has consequences on a number of areas, from defence and development of new technologies to standard-setting. It is also leading to increasing tensions especially between the USA and China, a rise in protectionism that is also undermining multilateral rules and institutions. “COVID-19 added to the challenges with logistic bottlenecks, a rise in shipping and energy prices, problems to access key materials and travel restrictions. European companies have to navigate this difficult environment that still comes with a lot of opportunities. Policymakers need to be even more careful when designing legislative initiatives that could impact European companies’ competitiveness”, she concluded.

Contact: Luisa Santos

EU-US Trade and Technology Council: business expectations

The first meeting of the EU-US Trade and Technology Council (TTC) will be held on 29 September in Pittsburgh, USA. See what European business expects from this important Transatlantic initiative.

Letter to Breton: more Single Market would benefit the twin transition

Following the publication of an updated Industrial Strategy and the underlying analysis of the EU Single Market bottlenecks on 5 May, BusinessEurope sent a letter to European Commissioner for Internal Market Thierry Breton stating that more Single Market would benefit the twin (green and digital) transition. European businesses note that the Single Market bottlenecks are re-confirmed through the analysis of 14 industrial eco-systems. But the European Commission should precisely indicate its actions to address those bottlenecks in the Commission’s annual work programs. In other words, a confirmed barrier in the Annual Single Market Report should be matched by a planned specific measure in the Commission’s work program.

BusinessEurope also highlights the importance of the EU Single Market for the twin transition to succeed. There is, however, a growing concern among European businesses that new legislative initiatives do not follow the Single Market principles and that they even create pre-conditions for market fragmentation in the EU. This could be detrimental for the roll-out of goods and services that meet the green and digital ambitions of Europe.

Contact: Martynas Barysas 

Business organisations call for modernisation of EU-Morocco agreement

On 21 September 2021, BusinessEurope, the General Confederation of Moroccan Enterprises and European Chamber of Commerce in Morocco adopted a “Modernisation Pact on Trade and Investment between the European Union (EU) and the Kingdom of Morocco”. The document calls for a long overdue modernisation of the framework for EU-Morocco trade and investment relations to unleash the untapped economic potential of this partnership and foster an effective and sustainable post-pandemic recovery. “Since the EU-Morocco Association Agreement entered into force in 2000 the world has changed, and we must adapt our agreement to the realities of 21st century trade and to the needs of businesses in key areas such as the digital economy”, said Pierre Gattaz, President of BusinessEurope, when the document was published.

The joint statement focuses on 8 main areas where the three organisations see the need for concrete action:

1. Investment
2. Non-Tariff barriers for industrial products
3. Services and transport
4. Professional qualifications
5. Customs and trade facilitation
6. SMEs
7. Business climate
8. Agricultural trade and sustainable food

Contact: Benedikt Wiedenhofer

Calendar 

• 10 October: EBA@10 Conferece
• 20-22 October: European Forum for New Ideas 2021
• 25-29 October: EU Sustainable Energy Week
• 31 October - 12 November: United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26)

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