HOW TO BUILD AN EU COMPETITIVENESS AGENDA? - Amidst shifts in the global economy and intensifying competition from the United States and China, the European Union’s (EU) economic and regulatory policies are coming up against a new reality in Brussels: an increased focus on Europe’s long-term economic competitiveness. In response, the European Union is looking into ways it can become more agile. The EU has commissioned two reports on the future of the EU’s single market and the future of European competitiveness, and ideas for reducing regulatory burdens have been floated. Confronted with the urgency of the green and digital transitions and the need to boost Europe’s competitiveness, Europe is also wrestling with competing approaches between free trade, industrial policy, and economic security. Concern in Europe extends to this side of the Atlantic as well. Implications of the US Inflation Reduction Act and greater government subsidies in industrial policy have caused a rethink of how the EU—as a historically open-market and free trade bloc that regulates the use of state subsidies—should adapt to new geopolitical and economic realities.

Against this backdrop, the Europe Center hosts an expert panel to discuss the EU’s economic competitiveness debate, what agenda may emerge for the next Commission mandate, and what it could mean for Europe and the transatlantic economic relationship.

This event is part of the Atlantic Council Europe Center’s Transatlantic Horizons Series, which seeks to outline a productive relationship for the United States and Europe for 2025 and beyond.

ORIGINAL AIRDATE: 05/16/2024