Overview
- At the World Economic Forum, Emmanuel Macron welcomed Chinese foreign direct investment in Europe but warned against subsidised or lower‑standard exports and pressed for technology transfer in key sectors.
- He proposed tools such as safeguard clauses, a European preference approach, incentives to attract investment, and a resilience strategy to derisk supply chains for raw materials and semiconductors.
- Macron cautioned that excess capacity and distortive practices from China risk swamping the machine tool and automobile sectors in Europe.
- He also condemned recent U.S. tariff actions as trade weaponisation and criticized pressure linked to territorial sovereignty, with coverage citing Greenland as context.
- China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun countered that Chinese competitiveness stems from R&D and market competition, encouraged market‑oriented Chinese investment in Europe, and urged fair, nondiscriminatory, transparent and predictable treatment for Chinese firms.