Bundesbank President Urges EU To Be More Decisive With China

• 18.10.2025, 21:06

The EU is an economically strong space and needs to play its cards right.

President of the German Federal Bank (Bundesbank) Joachim Nagel (Joachim Nagel) urged Europe to take more decisive action in trade with China to protect its own interests. China is more dependent on Europe than the other way around, he said in Washington on Saturday, October 18, writes Deutsche Welle.

As Nagel emphasized, the European Union is an economically strong space with about 450 million people, so it should "play its cards" more assertively. At the same time, Nagel said, Europe should avoid a trade war with China and maintain a dialog, but at the same time protect its own markets.

"Europe should play its cards in such a way that we are more assertive, because the most important market for Europeans is Europe itself," Nagel said.

China seeks new markets due to U.S. duties

As Reuters notes, U.S. duties are forcing China to divert its goods to other markets where they are offered at prices that local companies cannot compete with. In China itself, European firms are also finding it difficult to compete with local brands.

In October, U.S. President Donald Trump announced additional duties of 100 percent against China in response to China's tightening controls on rare earth metal exports. He also announced his intention to restrict exports of "critical software" to China.

China's Ministry of Commerce announced stricter controls on exports of technology related to the mining and processing of rare earth metals. Companies are now required to obtain authorization to export equipment and technology used in their production. Additional restrictions are envisioned for foreign firms. Beijing explained this decision by the need to protect national security, as rare earth elements are also used for military purposes.