European Union Trade Research Articles

The concept of ‘due cause’ and its role in safeguarding fundamental rights under EU trade mark law: how should the CJEU rule in IKEA, C-298/23?

Abstract While trade mark rights themselves constitute fundamental rights within the right to property, they may also collide with the fundamental rights of third parties. The latter is particularly evident where third parties try to justify their unauthorized use of a trade mark on the basis of their own fundamental rights. The collision between the fundamental rights–protected interests of the trade mark proprietor and the third parties become all the more apparent when it comes to the protection of trade marks with a reputation. Trade marks with a reputation are particularly exposed to use by third parties due to their high level of appreciation and recognition among the public and therefore deserve a special protection. However, this special protection must not get out of hand and must be restricted wherever the fundamental rights interests of third parties outweigh those of the trade mark proprietor. As a result, a balance must be struck between the colliding fundamental rights interests. All this raises the question where such a balancing of interests could take place in the context of the European Union (EU) Trade Mark Regulation 2017/1001 (EUTMR) and Directive on the European Union Trade Mark (EUTMD). And once the ‘where’ has been resolved, a question still remains as to how an appropriate balance can be achieved or rather what criteria need to be taken into account when balancing these interests. To answer these questions, existing case law of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) provides only limited to no substantive guidance. It is therefore not surprising that a Belgian national court requested the CJEU to clarify precisely these questions at EU level in 2023 (IKEA, C-298/23). In this case, the main role is played by the negative condition ‘without due cause’, which arises from the EUTMR and EUTMD provisions protecting trade marks with a reputation and which stipulates that the trade mark proprietor can only enforce the special protection if the third party is unable to establish that the use of the trade mark takes place with ‘due cause’. It is therefore the task of the CJEU to clarify whether the required balance of fundamental rights interests can be achieved within the framework of the undefined legal concept of ‘due cause’ and, if so, to specify the criteria by which such a balance can be achieved. This article sets out and discusses how the CJEU should solve this task and concludes that the concept of ‘due cause’ must be interpreted broadly in order to provide a flexible counterweight to the far-reaching protection of trade marks with a reputation. Hence, the concept of ‘due cause’ can be understood as a safeguarding mechanism for the fundamental rights of third parties, whereby various criteria must be taken into account in order to achieve a fair balance with the fundamental rights–protected interests of the trade mark proprietor.

Corporate Social Responsibility on Labour under the European Union - Vietnam Free Trade Agreement and Policy Implications for Vietnam

The article provides an in-depth understanding of the commitment to corporate social responsibility (CSR) on labour under the new generation of free trade agreements (FTAs) of the European Union (EU) in general and the Vietnam - EU Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) in particular. Accordingly, this article clarifies the evolution of CSR commitments in the EU's new generation of FTAs via the EU's foreign and trade policies. On that premise, the article conducts a comprehensive examination of the nature of CSR commitments related to labour in EVFTA. The article also examines current legislation of the EU and its member states. Then, it proposes a variety of policy implications for Vietnam and other developing nations to implement CSR commitments in the context of global sustainable development.

The Normative Influence of the Belt and Road Initiative in Europe

This article analyses how the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is used as a tool to spread Chinese normative language and soft power in the European Union (EU), as well as the potential governance effects of the BRI. Through in-depth elite interviews and comparative qualitative analysis of the BRI Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) between EU countries and China, it provides a comprehensive overview of the content of the MoUs, most of which are not publicly available. It finds that, while little normative influence can be seen, the MoUs represent a partially successful exercise of soft power. However, growing scepticism and even resentment towards China are emerging among EU BRI countries. This, paired with the securitisation of Chinese foreign direct investment that originated from the paradigm shift in EU trade policy towards economic security, has led to greater unity in the EU and a more antagonistic vision of China by its Member States.

The European Green Deal in Terms of Impacts on International Trade

Environment and climate change in the world gained importance at the end of the 20th century and the cooperation of countries in this area gradually increased. Especially the framework protocols signed under the umbrella of the United Nations (UN) made the subject a remarkable area in the international arena. The European Union (EU) became the first actor in the world to take concrete steps in this field with the European Green Deal. The Green Deal has introduced new regulations in a wide range of policy areas. The behaviors adopted by the EU, which maintains its role as a normative power in the international arena, draws paths that include behavioral patterns as implemented. The field of environment and climate change is also an area where the EU is active at the global level, and the effects of the determined rules expected to be seen at the global level. At this point, the trade relations will be a significant channel in the dissemination of the understanding and rules adopted by the EU. The fact that the EU has put provisions on the subject in the preferential trade agreements it has signed is the most substantial indicator of this situation

Explaining the politicization of EU trade agreement negotiations over the past 30 years

AbstractAlthough the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership with the USA and the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement with Canada have elicited considerable domestic contestation in Europe, several other agreements have been negotiated into public and media indifference. What explains this difference? In this article, I put forward a number of arguments on the structural causes of the politicization of European Union (EU) trade policy over the past 30 years and test them against a newly collected dataset covering 19 preferential trade agreements. The qualitative comparative analysis suggests that the politicization of EU trade negotiations is determined by the co-occurrence of several, well-defined conditions. More specifically, it tells us that: (1) the Lisbon Treaty's reform of EU trade policymaking is the main driver of politicization, (2) the level of public support for the EU is of particular relevance when it comes to ‘deep and comprehensive’ agreements that touch on sensitive domestic issues, and that (3) high adjustment costs expected from trade liberalization can lead to the politicization of trade negotiations.

Inside the European Union's Trade Machinery: Institutional Changes in an Age of Geoeconomics

AbstractIn the context of increasingly assertive behaviour in international trade policy, various scholars seem to agree on the presence of a ‘geoeconomic turn’ in European Union (EU) trade policy. Whilst various aspects of this turn have been studied, the way in which the EU's trade institution might have adapted to this new context remains unclear. Therefore, this article addresses the following research question: how has the Directorate‐General for Trade (DG Trade) adapted to the geoeconomic turn in international trade policy? Using an innovative historical institutionalist framework and directed content analysis, the article analyses EU official documents and 14 interviews with EU officials. We find that, despite apparent continuity, under President von der Leyen, a gradual process of institutional adaptation through different forms of layering and conversion has taken place within DG Trade, increasing the EU's geoeconomic capacities and geoeconomic thinking inside the EU's trade machinery.

Kebijakan Perdagangan Uni Eropa terhadap Produk Logam Dasar

Trade relations between the European Union and China experienced rapid growth during the first two decades of the 21st century. The increase in trade relations is in line with the implementation of EU trade barriers through anti-dumping investigation reports at the World Trade Organization (WTO) against Chinese products. In the period 2001 – 2022, Chinese base metal products became the commodity with the most reported cases in antidumping investigations carried out by the EU at the WTO. However, in the same period, the value of imports of basic metal products to the European Union was lower compared to the value of imports of other products such as electricity & equipment as well as machine products, nuclear reactors and boilers. This article aims to explain the reasons behind the European Union's stance in making Chinese base metal products the most common commodity in antidumping investigation reports at the WTO. This article uses Alan Bryman's qualitative method, and the neoclassical realism theory proposed by Gideon Rose to analyze European Union policy towards Chinese Base Metal Products. The application of systemic pressure variables in neoclassical realism theory influences the European Union's position in the international system as an external factor, while there are other variables, in this case internal factors, which also influence the European Union's strategic trade policy-making process through the European Commission. The findings of this article show that China's dominance in world metals consumption and production since the early 2000s, especially in the 2013 – 2017 period, triggered the European Commission's perception that the European base metals industry was experiencing a decline in competitiveness and needed protection. In the 2013-2017 period, China's contribution to the world base metals market increased by 13% compared to 8% in the previous decade. On the other hand, the European Commission has maximized its influence in mobilizing national forces as outlined in the resolution document 2017/C399/12 to build a sustainable base metals industry. The European Union's trade policy in making Chinese base metal products the highest case report in antidumping investigations at the WTO over the last two decades, was driven by the European Commission, as the trade policy formulation unit in the European Union, to respond to systemic challenges in the global base metals market.

Frames and Issue Linkage: EU Trade Policy in the Geoeconomic Turn

AbstractTrading actors like the European Union (EU) are increasingly seen as geopoliticising trade policy, but such assertions may not capture the extent to which the Directorate General for Trade (DG Trade) uses this policy to achieve security objectives. This article investigates changes over time in justifications for trade policy by differentiating between how the EU and DG Trade use frames – articulated in four EU trade strategies with two DG Trade strategic plans and 10 annual management plans – to propose solutions in response to the geoeconomic turn. This article finds that, whilst DG Trade's discourse continues to reflect the dominant market liberal frame, geopoliticising pressures are encouraging the emergence of an EU counter‐frame linking trade to non‐trade issues and a reframing of the counter‐frame that increasingly links trade and security policy. As a result, the EU's framing of trade policy resembles deep geopoliticisation, whilst DG Trade's framing resembles reluctant geopoliticisation.

Round-up of European Union trade marks in 2023

Abstract The purpose of this article is to provide a quick overview of the most significant European Union trade mark (EUTM) cases decided in 2023 by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) and the General Court (GC). This article has a practical bias and is aimed at readers who rapidly wish to find the key decisions of 2023.

TRADEMARK - PROTECTIVE ELEMENT OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS

At EU level, the legal framework for trademarks coexists with national systems harmonized through the Trademarks Directive [Directive (EU) 2015/2436 of 16 December 2015]. In addition to the national way, other possible ways for trademark protection in the EU are the Benelux way, the EU trademark, introduced in 1994, and the international way. Regulation (EU) 2017/1001 of 14 June 2017 on the European Union trade mark codifies and replaces all previous EC regulations on the EU trademark. The codification was done for reasons of clarity, given that the EU trade mark system had already been substantially amended several times. The EU trademark has a unitary character and equal effect throughout the EU. The European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) is responsible for managing the EU trademark and EU designs.

Exploring the Brussels Effect

The European Union (EU) wields significant influence over global markets through a phenomenon known as the Brussels Effect. This strategy involves aligning EU standards with regulations, effectively positioning the EU as a key driver of environmental and climate trade standards. Within the realm of trade in forest products, the EU has implemented instruments such as the Timber Regulation (EUTR), which was succeeded by Deforestation Free (EUDR) in 2023, and the EU Forest Law, Governance, and Trade Action Plan (FLEGT). These regulations have exerted considerable pressure on Brazil to embrace best practices for timber extraction, primarily by adhering to the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and other private initiatives. The implications of EU influence in this context give rise to both positive and negative consequences, underscoring its significance in shaping global forest policies.

How does technological readiness, among other factors, influence the dynamics of agricultural exports from Vietnam to major EU trading partners?

The agricultural sector plays a significant role in Vietnam's economy, contributing to food security, employment, and export revenues. The European Union (EU) has emerged as a promising market for Vietnam's agricultural exports in recent years. However, Vietnam must embrace technological advancements in the agricultural sector to penetrate and succeed in the highly competitive and regulated EU market. Despite the evidence supporting the positive impact of technology adoption on agricultural exports, there is a research gap regarding the specific role of technological readiness in promoting Vietnam's agricultural exports to the EU. This study aims to fill this research gap by investigating the relationship between technological readiness and Vietnam's agricultural exports to the EU market. The findings can provide valuable insights for policymakers and stakeholders to formulate strategies that enhance the competitiveness of Vietnam's agricultural sector and increase exports to the EU market.

External Europeanization through timber trade agreements: Tracing causality in environmental governance reform

The business models of tropical timber production have long been configured around illegal practices that cause environmental degradation and hinder socioeconomic progress in the Global South. However, the global corporations trading timber often point to regulatory governance weaknesses in the jurisdictions where they source timber as hindering efforts to address illegalities in their supply chains. In an innovative response, the European Union (EU) combines mandatory due diligence for timber imports – the EU Timber Regulation (EUTR) – with EU Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) Voluntary Partnership trade Agreements (VPAs) that offer finance, technology transfer, and capacity building to support domestic regulation in timber exporting countries. Through process tracing, we assess the extent to which the EU's efforts have been effective in reforming domestic environmental governance to reduce illegal logging in Cameroon and Ghana. This allows for understanding the potential of external Europeanization, a theoretical approach explaining how and why countries (and the businesses they regulate) outside of the EU might adapt their domestic governance institutions and processes to EU rules and norms. As the EU considers similar approaches to regulate forest-related illegalities and deforestation in global agricultural supply chains, it is important to take stock of past and on-going policy efforts. We find that the causal mechanisms embedded in FLEGT have lost their transformative potential due to unfinished domestic reforms, the technocracy of supply chain traceability systems, and market leakage. Our findings suggest the VPA deliberations underpinning supply-side efforts have not shifted the power balance but rather distracted from the reality that there will be winners and losers as the countries shift toward a more transparent and accountable political economy.

Digital Trade Competitiveness and Impact Factors Analysis - Based on Digital Economy Development Level Perspective

The popularization of digital technology and the vigorous development of the global Internet have promoted the rapid growth of digital trade and become one of the engines of international trade. Digital trade, which includes e-commerce, cross-border digital services, and digital payment, has become an important part of international trade, providing enterprises with unlimited opportunities in the global market and consumers with more choices. This study examines China, the United States, the United Kingdom, and the European Union's (27) trade competitiveness and scope of digital commerce from 2015 to 2022. First, based on scale patterns, the globe has developed a digital economic pattern that consists of China, the European Union, and the United States. Second, the European Union and the United States also have greater advantages than China's digital economy from a structural standpoint. Third, according to the dynamic trend, the difference between the EU and the US in terms of the scale of the digital economy is steadily closing. Fourth, from the standpoint of the competition landscape, China and the EU hold the top positions in the trade of digital products and services, respectively.

Procedural autonomy of national courts acting as EU trade mark courts—how far can the effectiveness of unitary character of EUTMs be ensured?

Abstract The Court of Justice of the European Union has recently rendered preliminary rulings in two separate European Union trade mark (EUTM) infringement cases, Gemeinde Bodmann-Ludwigshafen (C-256/21) and LM v KP (C-654/21), confirming that a counterclaim for invalidity in an EUTM infringement proceedings is independent in scope and the outcome from the infringement action, reflecting the principle of procedural autonomy of national courts acting as EUTM courts.

Increasing mercury bioaccumulation and biomagnification rates of Nile perch (Lates niloticus L.) in Winam Gulf, Lake Victoria, Kenya

The Nile perch (Lates niloticus L.) commercial fishery for Lake Victoria in East Africa is an important source of revenue and employment. We focused on shifts in food web structure and total mercury (THg) bioaccumulation and biomagnification in Nile perch, and lower food web items collected from Winam Gulf (Kenya) sampled 24 years apart (1998 and 2022). Stable isotope carbon (δ13C) values were higher in all species from 2022 compared to 1998. Stable nitrogen isotope (δ15N) values in baseline organisms were lower in 2022 compared to 1998. In Nile perch, δ15N values were correlated with total length, but the δ15N-length regressions were steeper in 1998 compared to 2022 except for one large (158 cm) Nile perch from 1998 with an uncharacteristically low δ15N value. Total Hg concentrations were lower in lower trophic species from 2022 compared to 1998. However, the THg bioaccumulation rate (as a function of fish length) in Nile perch was greater in 2022 compared to 1998 resulting in 24.2 % to 42.4 % higher wet weight dorsal THg concentrations in 2022 Nile perch for market slot size (50 to 85 cm) fish. The contrasting observations of increased THg bioaccumulation with size in 2022 against decreases in the rate of trophic increase with size and lower THg concentrations of lower food web items imply reduced fish growth and potential bioenergetic stressors on Winam Gulf Nile perch. All samples except 1 large Nile perch (139 cm total length collected in 2022) had THg concentrations below the European Union trade limit (500 ng/g wet weight). However, for more vulnerable individuals (women, children and frequent fish eaters), we recommend a decrease in maximum monthly meal consumption for 55–75 cm Nile perch from 16 meals per month calculated for 1998 to a limit of 8 meals per month calculated for 2022.

Trade and economic cooperation between Ukraine and Poland

The article analyzes the main trends and features of trade and economic cooperation between Ukraine and Poland, taking into account the factors of European integration and the geopolitical transformation of the present day. It substantiates the quality and dynamics of its development and the existing issues and challenges at this stage. The dynamics of Ukraine's export-import volumes, including trade with Poland, the commodity structure of Ukraine's exports to Poland, and some features of the European Union's trade policy towards our country as a result of Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine are analyzed. The article identifies the main problems and challenges faced by both countries in the process of trade and economic cooperation and assesses their impact on economic relations. Potential opportunities for the development and deepening of mutually beneficial relations between the two countries are identified. Expanding trade and economic cooperation can also form the basis for joint projects in the green energy and agricultural sectors, which is in line with current trends in sustainable development. Special attention is given to the importance of resolving existing disputes between Ukraine and Poland through negotiations and agreements. A clear picture of the current state and prospects of trade and economic cooperation between Ukraine and Poland was obtained. Emphasis is placed on the need to intensify cooperation for the successful advancement of Ukraine along the path of European integration. Deeper integration within the framework of European programs and projects can accelerate the process of adapting the Ukrainian economy to European standards and requirements. It is proven that the intensification of Ukrainian-Polish trade and economic cooperation can enrich the strategic partnership between the two states with new content. In the future, the successful implementation of these areas of cooperation will not only contribute to the economic growth of both countries, but also strengthen their political and cultural ties, which will become the basis for long-term stability and prosperity in the region.

The European Union trade sanctions against Russia: Contemporary practice

Targeted financial sanctions have been playing a major role in the toolbox of European Union (EU) policy of sanctions since early 2000s. They have been targeting particular natural persons and entities, rather than states in general. Things have been changing dramatically since the outbreak of Russian military operation against Ukraine in February 2022. EU has already implemented massive bans on exports and imports of wide range of goods and services to and from Russia. Meanwhile, academic literature on sanctions still has a major gap in understanding of trade sanctions. The goal of the article is to fill this gap, taking into account contemporary trends of the EU trade sanctions against Russia. The major point implies that the EU policy of trade sanctions vis a vis Russia suffers from the imbalance between the quantity of sanctions and the quality of ways and means to enforce them. Unlike the United States, which enjoys well-developed instruments and practice of the use of secondary sanctions and enforcement, the EU has to implement sanctions and to develop enforcement in a simultaneous way. Brussels has already introduced mechanisms of de-facto secondary sanctions and is promoting the unification of enforcement legislation among the member-states. Current enforcement activity of member-states on the basis of domestic legislation compensates such an imbalance. The study of these trends purports the analysis of the EU normative documents as well as the ones, which reflect political and legal practice of their implementation.

The rise and fall of the EU-China Comprehensive Agreement on Investment: ‘open strategic autonomy’ in action

ABSTRACT (Open) strategic autonomy (OSA) has quickly become the dominant concept in European Union (EU) trade policy strategy. This article aims to better understand how the concept plays out in policy practice by focusing on its discursive use in the rise and fall of the EU-China Comprehensive Investment Agreement (CAI). We start from the assumption that OSA as an ‘empty signifier’ is sufficiently malleable to account for diverging interpretations. Building on existing literature, we then construct an analytical framework that distinguishes between trade policy paradigms. Subsequently, we utilize Fairclough & Fairclough’s ‘scheme of practical argument’ to analyze how the three signifiers of OSA – openness, sustainability and assertiveness – are connected in EU trade policy debates for or against CAI between May 2020 and September 2021. Our findings reveal that the concept of OSA can be utilized in both economics and foreign policy oriented arguments. While the Trade instead of Foreign Policy’ (TiFP) paradigm was initially co-opted by the neoliberal paradigm, the Trade steered by Foreign Policy (TsFP) paradigm became gradually more dominant. These findings also contribute to explaining, respectively, the rise and fall of the CAI.

Internationalisation of Australian small and medium-sized enterprises: The case of the Australia and EU Free Trade Agreement

Australia is a member of many multilateral trade bodies and engages in trade agreements of a multilateral and bilateral kind across most regions. In June 2018, it launched negotiations for a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the European Union (EU) which are still ongoing and since then Australia and the EU have conducted fifteen rounds of negotiations (last one on 28 May 2023 in Brussels). This paper aims to explore the business awareness of the EU amongst Australian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and to analyse the factors that influence their internationalisation. To ascertain this, we reviewed the results of two surveys[1] that were conducted pre- and post-COVID-19 pandemic (also coinciding with the Brexit transition period). This paper argues that SMEs in Australia are essentially unaware of the EU as a market and that no significant change in the business perception of the EU and potential international trade opportunities occurred between the pre- and post-COVID-19 political contexts.