China plans talks to set up export-control dialogue mechanism
The move follows a month of tit-for-tat signals between Beijing and Brussels over trade and technology curbs
Published
China plans to hold talks aimed at setting up a mechanism for dialogue on export controls.
The plan comes as Beijing prepares its own change to dual-use export rules. China's commerce ministry has said it will refine how dual-use items are identified and controlled, with the change taking effect on Nov 18.
The move also follows weeks of friction with Europe. China's commerce ministry has said it will respond if Brussels broadens its tariff measures, and Germany's Chancellor Friedrich Merz and France's President Emmanuel Macron have asked Brussels to fast-track a new trade instrument that could cut China off from the single market.
An export-control dialogue mechanism would mark a procedural step toward managing the tech and trade frictions that have run through October, from the EU's proposed market-access tool to China's warning of retaliation against new restrictions. It fits a broader pattern of incremental de-escalation gestures Beijing has offered this month, including expanded crude import quotas and soybean purchases, even as its disputes with the EU over hybrid vehicles remain only partly settled. Whether the mechanism becomes a substantive channel or stays at the talks stage will determine whether it actually reduces the risk of further export curbs hitting semiconductor and industrial supply chains.