This episode contains segments on:
- China’s January-July 2026 utilised FDI
- China’s January-July 2026 online retail sales
- Chinese Ministry of Justice declares EU probe into JD.com as unlawful
- The EU’s End-of-Life Vehicles Regulation (ELVR) enters into force
Listeners are also invited to attend a breakfast roundtable with Covington & Burling LLP senior counsel and former Assistant United States Trade Representative Timothy P. Stratford on US-China trade relations.
Contact:
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Read more:
China’s January-July 2026 utilised FDI
https://www.mofcom.gov.cn/xwfb/rcxwfb/art/2026/art_d22dcc4d9d19455bbfce84ad52727aa4.html
China’s January-July 2026 online retail sales
https://www.mofcom.gov.cn/xwfb/sjfzrfb/art/2026/art_86cb6daa2fb64a978d4aaf7b13168dd0.html
Chinese Ministry of Justice declares EU probe into JD.com as unlawful
https://en.moj.gov.cn/2026-08/20/c_1206891.htm
The EU’s End-of-Life Vehicles Regulation (ELVR) enters into force
Breakfast roundtable with Covington & Burling LLP senior counsel and former Assistant United States Trade Representative Timothy P. Stratford on US-China trade relations
https://www.europeanchamber.com.cn/en/upcoming-events/29606/
Transcript:
RUI: Hello and welcome to China ShortCuts,
XINHE: the European Chamber’s weekly catchup on China’s business landscape.
RUI: This episode was recorded on 26th August 2026.
(MUSIC)
RUI: According to data released by the Ministry of Commerce on 21st August, actualised foreign direct investment—or FDI—into China declined during the first seven months of the year. Between January and July 2026, China attracted 438 billion yuan of utilised FDI, 6.2 per cent less than a year prior.
XINHE: Nearly three quarters of this figure flowed into the services sector, with the rest channelled into manufacturing.
FDI into high-tech industries saw strong growth, increasing by 32.7 per cent year-on-year, to stand at 182.3 billion yuan, and accounting for 41.6 per cent of actualised FDI over the same timeframe.
(MUSIC)
RUI: On 20th August, the Ministry of Commerce—or MOFCOM—issued a press release to announce that China’s e-commerce sector grew by 4.8 per cent year-on-year during the first seven months of 2026. It also noted that the e-commerce sector accounted for more than half of all retail sales of consumer goods and services-related growth generated over the same period.
XINHE: Sales of online travel and life services both performed particularly well, increasing by 24.9 and 16.3 per cent year-on-year respectively, as did online sales of agricultural products which recorded 12.8 per cent year-on-year growth.
(MUSIC)
RUI: On 28th May, the European Commission opened an investigation, under its Foreign Subsidies Regulation, into Chinese company JD.com’s proposed acquisition of German retail company CECONOMY.
XINHE: On 19th August, China’s Ministry of Justice issued an official response, declaring that the EU’s investigation constitutes “unjustified extraterritorial jurisdiction”, and that with immediate effect “no organisation or individual may implement or assist in the enforcement of such improper extraterritorial jurisdiction measures”.
The investigation marks China’s second use of its Regulations on Countering Improper Extraterritorial Jurisdiction, which were issued in April by the State Council. In May 2026, China’s Ministry of Justice declared an EU probe into Chinese security equipment company Nuctech—also initiated under EU’s FSR—as unlawful.
RUI: Multinational companies operating in China are increasingly at risk of being caught between a rock and a hard place due to conflicts between Chinese laws and regulations and those in third countries/markets, including the EU and its member states.
In addition to the EU’s Foreign Subsidies Regulation, it is not clear if businesses either operating in China or sourcing from the country will be able to comply with other EU regulations, including the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism—or CBAM—and the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive.
(MUSIC)
RUI: On 13th August, the EU’s End-of-Life Vehicles (ELV) Regulation entered into force, revising rules on the design, production, collection and treatment of vehicles at the end of their life.
The regulation aims to strengthen circularity in the automotive sector by improving resource efficiency, increasing the recovery and reuse of valuable materials, and enhancing the environmental performance of vehicles throughout their lifecycle. It also aims to reduce Europe’s dependence on importing virgin raw materials by increasing the rate of recovery of critical raw materials—including steel, aluminium, copper and rare earth elements—from vehicles at the end of their life.
XINHE: The ELV Regulation is the latest of a number of EU regulations that have been introduced with a view to boosting the bloc’s industrial resilience, as well as mitigating its exposure to external supply shocks.
Businesses should expect more similar pieces of legislation to follow, given that improving the EU’s resilience is viewed increasingly as imperative by European policy makers. In this regard, events such as the COVID-19 pandemic, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, China’s 2025 imposition of new export controls on rare earth elements, and the ongoing conflict in the Middle East have all underscored the fragility of global supply chains.
(MUSIC)
RUI: The ever-changing US-China relationship has been a key source of uncertainty for European businesses operating in or with China in recent years.
Following a landmark summit held this summer, it was announced in June that both sides had agreed to establish a ‘trade council’, under which they would discuss how they can cooperate economically, with a view to reciprocally reducing tariffs on 30 billion US dollars’ worth of goods. Washington and Peking are also currently in communication regarding a potential high-level bilateral exchange, set to take place later this year, which has AI governance and industrial cooperation on the agenda.
XINHE: Despite this progress, with the November 2026 US mid-terms fast approaching, US-China economic relations could again reach an inflection point, as America’s China policy is placed back under the spotlight of domestic politics.
RUI: Join us in person in Beijing on 11th September to hear Mr. Timothy P. Stratford, Senior Counsel at Covington & Burling LLP and former AmCham China Chairman and Assistant United States Trade Representative, analyse the latest developments in US-China trade and investment relations.
(MUSIC)
XINHE: Thanks for listening, and don’t forget to tune in again next week.
RUI: In the meantime, please find useful links in the episode notes.
RUI: Listen to the full episode on our WeChat account or your preferred podcast platform.