Global China Conversations #37
How Will Trump 2.0 Reshape European-Chinese Economic Relations?
Topic
The return of Donald Trump to the office of US President heralds a shift in the global geopolitical and geo-economic landscape, with profound implications for European-Chinese relations. Under Trump’s first administration, U.S.-China tensions escalated, leading to a reconfiguration of global trade and investment flows, as well as intensified pressure on European policymakers to align more closely with Washington's China strategy. With the onset of Trump 2.0, Europe faces an even greater challenge to reconcile its strategic autonomy with economic relations with China, its second largest trading partner, and its long-standing alliance with the United States.
For Europe, the implications can be profound: potential reductions in exports to the U.S., a surge in Chinese imports, and heightened economic uncertainty. As the EU navigates these turbulent waters, critical questions demand attention. Can Europe’s de-risking strategy with China coexist with increased trade and investment? What role will the World Trade Organization play in mediating this evolving power dynamic? Are we witnessing the rise of permanent economic and political blocs, and how should the EU respond? This Global China Conversation will explore how Trump 2.0 might reshape European-Chinese economic relations under the pressures of shifting alliances, economic protectionism, and strategic competition.
Program
The event consists of different impulse lectures followed by a discussion.
The Global China Conversation #37 will be held in English.
Speakers

Adam Posen
Adam S. Posen is president of the Peterson Institute for International Economics. Under his leadership, since January 2013, the Institute has grown to 45 world-renowned fellows and won global recognition for its research on macroeconomics, trade, international finance, and globalization. He has himself contributed to research and public policy in the areas of G20 monetary and fiscal policies, European economic integration since the euro, Japan’s recovery from its Great Recession, and China-US economic relations. From 2009 to 2012, Posen served as an external voting member of the Bank of England's rate-setting Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), and he was named to The Atlantic’s list of superstar central bankers fighting the financial crisis. He co-authored Inflation Targeting with Bernanke, Laubach, and Mishkin while an economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York (1994-97). He is an inaugural CEPR Distinguished Fellow. He received his BA and PhD from Harvard University.

Jörg Wuttke
Jörg Wuttke is a Partner with the DGA Group/ Albright Stonebridge Group since August 2024 and is based in the Washington DC. Until July 2024 Mr. Wuttke was Vice President of BASF China for 27 years. He was President of the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China from 2007 to 2010, 2014 to 2017 and again from 2019 to 2023. From 2001 to 2004 Mr. Wuttke was the Chairman of the German Chamber of Commerce in China. He joined the Robert Bosch supervisory board in 2023. Since its establishment in 2013, Mr. Wuttke is member of the Advisory Board of Germany’s foremost Think Tank on China, Mercator Institute for China Studies (MERICS), in Berlin. He lived in China for more than 35 years.
Moderation

Andreas Fuchs
Andreas Fuchs is a Professor of Developmental Economics, Director of the Centre for Modern East Asian Studies at the University of Göttingen, and Director of the Kiel Institute China Initiative. His research analyzes trade, investment and development policies with quantitative methods and a special focus on China and other emerging economies. He also investigates the political economy of natural disasters, humanitarian crises, and non-militarized conflicts.