Sefcovic says EU-China trade talks yield credible outcome, plans October visit
The European Commission vice president will travel to China on October 8-9 for further talks
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European Commission Vice President Maros Sefcovic said talks with China are producing a credible outcome, covering European access to the Chinese market and export controls on rare earths. He described the contacts between the two sides as unprecedented in intensity. Sefcovic will travel to China on October 8-9 to continue the discussions.
The EU talks run alongside a separate US-China track. Trump and Xi are due to meet in Washington on September 24 to discuss trade, rare earths and artificial intelligence. US and China negotiators have already held a second day of trade talks in New York focused on AI and investment ahead of that summit. US Trade Representative Greer has said there is no broad China deal in place, though rare earth shipments are arriving, just not in the volumes Washington wants. Trump is also expected to decide this week on a separate US-China AI deal.
On rare earths specifically, China's JL Mag has said it plans to add up to 20,000 tons of extra annual magnet capacity by 2028, as Washington keeps pressing for more supply.
Europe is running its own negotiation with China on market access and rare earths while Washington pursues a different agenda built around AI controls and Boeing orders. The two parallel tracks suggest neither side expects a unified Western position on China, which weakens the leverage either side could bring alone but also lowers the chance that friction in one track spills into the other. For now, that leaves market direction unaffected.