Trade is central to the relationship between China and the EU. The $546bn in bilateral trade between two of the world’s biggest economies underpins a broader strategic partnership in which growing business ties have delivered great benefits to both sides.

In the past year, however, China-EU trade has been on a downward trajectory, declining 3.7 per cent in 2012 and a further 1.9 per cent in the first quarter of this year. This is very worrying. The main cause is the sluggish European economy, where demand is weak and competitiveness is declining. But the EU’s protectionist measures against China have also had a harmful impact on trade.

This month, the European Commission informed member states of a proposal to impose provisional anti-dumping duties averaging 47 per cent on photovoltaic products –core components of solar panels – imported from China. A week later, on May 15, the commission said that it was prepared to launch an anti-dumping and anti-subsidy investigation into imports of mobile telecommunications equipment from China.