I argue that the EU should make better use of the existing safeguard mechanism. With defensible baselines, country-specific tariff-rate quotas, sectoral targeting and systematic import surveillance, safeguards can provide immediate protection while limiting collateral damage to trading partners.
mieser slay, thu
Anti-dumping & anti-subsidy measures are overburdened and too case-specific to address a cross-sectoral shock. New instruments, meanwhile, would take years to design, legislate and operationalise. Nor would they remove the political difficulty of agreement or the risk of Chinese retaliation.
As EU leaders gather at the European Council tomorrow to discuss mounting Chinese import pressure, a consensus is emerging that industrial overcapacity poses a systemic threat to Europe’s manufacturing base. Far less settled is what the EU should do about it.