French President Emmanuel Macron heads to China for his fourth state visit, aiming to balance Europe’s economic reliance with security concerns as Beijing’s growing assertiveness strains trade and diplomatic ties.
Chinese Exports Hammering European Industry
Macron, who will start his trip with a visit to Beijing’s Forbidden City on Wednesday, will meet President Xi Jinping on Thursday in the capital and again on Friday during a trip to Chengdu, in southwestern Sichuan province.
His visit comes after a tense trip by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in July, when she said ties between the EU and China were at an “inflection point.”
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz will visit early next year.
Trade tensions between China and Europe have risen as cheap Chinese exports, in the steel sector in particular after being shut out of the U.S. market, are hammering swathes of European industry.
Europe fears China’s edge in EVs and rare earths could threaten key industries, while Beijing uses U.S. tariffs to pitch itself as a business partner despite concerns over its support for Russia and state‑subsidised model.
More Access to Chinese Tech
Ahead of the trip, Macron’s advisers said he would push for a rebalancing of trade dynamics so that China boosts domestic consumption and hoped the “gains from innovation could be shared”, so that Europe gets access to Chinese technology.
To combat growing concern over China trade, the European Union is expected to unveil a new economic security doctrine that could see the bloc deploy its toolbox of trade instruments in a more aggressive way towards China.
France, with limited car sales in China but facing EV transition pressures at home, backed EU tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles. The move sparked a year‑long brandy dispute with Beijing, seen as retaliation.
Meanwhile, despite opening a new assembly line, Airbus is unlikely to secure a long‑awaited 500‑jet order during Macron’s visit, a deal that could bolster Beijing’s leverage against Washington’s push for Boeing purchases.
(With inputs from Reuters)
