China said the European Union’s measures to shield its companies from foreign subsidies are a barrier to trade and investment, marking the latest clash in the ongoing trade dispute between the two sides.

Reeves’ mission has become more desperate as the U.K. economy continues to falter, with borrowing costs this week reaching 1998 levels and the pound tanking, threatening the government’s pledge to generate growth and make Britons wealthier. That's prompted some grumbling back home as opposition parties urge Reeves to pull the trip altogether.

Latest report from EU Chamber of Commerce in China also flags increased costs and market barriers that are ‘stripping away global competitiveness’.

China's exports probably expanded at a faster pace in December, suggesting producers raced to move inventory to major markets ahead of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's return to the White House this month and fresh trade risks.

China's Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) announced on Thursday that it has determined that the practices adopted by the EU in its investigations of Chinese enterprises based on the Foreign Subsidies Regulation (FSR) and its implementing rules constituted trade and investment barriers.

An increasing number of examples indicate that the key to the EU's green transition lies not in imposing trade barriers, but rather in effectively expanding the green consumption market. Only by fostering a robust market for sustainable products and services can the EU support environmental goals and enhance economic growth by creating new markets and job opportunities in the green sector.

Post-Covid China has become more open to foreign tourists than it has ever been in decades, with Europe so far the main target of Beijing's expanding unilateral visa-free entrance scheme. That is, except Sweden,

So far, China has used carbon intensity — the amount of carbon dioxide emitted per unit of GDP — as its official target. It announced the metric in 2009, at the height of its economic growth, after facing pressur e to set a quantitative goal to curb its emissions. Its argument was that it was a target that wouldn’t constrain China’s growth.

The world economy resisted battering by conflicts and inflation last year and is expected to grow a subdued 2.8% in 2025, the United Nations said Thursday.

What’s at stake: The hurry before the president-elect’s inauguration on January 20 underscores the EU’s insecurity over his potential actions when he returns to the White House, following his recent threats. These include refusing to rule out taking Greenland by force and suggesting Canada and the Panama Canal should become part of the US.

The EU and Indonesia must unite to uphold the rules-based order amid Russian aggression and looming US-China tensions while providing an alternative.