EU overtakes US as China’s top source of trade disputes, new data shows

The European Union has surpassed the United States as the economy with the most serious trade disputes with China, driven by conflicts over semiconductor materials, rare earth magnets and other strategic sectors, according to a Chinese trade body.

A monthly index released on Wednesday by the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT), a semi-official Beijing-based organisation, found that in November 2025 – the last month tracked – the EU ranked as China’s top source of trade tensions among 20 economies.

The bloc scored first on the trade friction index, mainly caused by anti-subsidy and anti-dumping probes. Readings were elevated in semiconductor materials, rare earth magnets and liquid-crystal display products, the survey by the Ministry of Commerce-affiliated trade body showed.

“Unreasonable and discriminatory measures targeting Chinese companies by the EU have indeed increased,” CCPIT spokesperson Wang Wenshuai said on Wednesday.

Tensions flared in September after the Dutch government temporarily took control of Nexperia, a Chinese-owned chipmaker, triggering a dispute over export controls. Beijing had earlier introduced strict licensing requirements on rare earth exports – widely seen as a response to US tariffs – complicating access for European manufacturers.

The two sides agreed to hold “urgent” talks in Brussels in October, followed by China announcing a 12-month pause on expanded rare earth export controls and confirming the resumption of some Nexperia exports to the EU.

In January, Brussels formally launched its Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, requiring importers of carbon-intensive goods to report embedded emissions and eventually pay a carbon price.

South China Morning Post