The European trade policy is the key to any European business succeeding in the 21st century. It is very important to be well prepared for the various deals that European trade pacts sign with each other as every country has its own trade policies. If you are planning for a European trade policy, there are three main factors which you should consider before making your choice.
International Factors
The first factor is the type of relationship that you want with another country. There are some countries which have closer relationships with others while there are some which don’t have close relationships but they form quite powerful trading partnerships and there are also those countries which do not have any significant trade ties with each other at all.
The second factor is the political environment in Europe. You must remember that there are a number of political unions that make up the European Union. The members of these unions have some form of common economic interest apart from political interest. A major part of the Schengen area also lies in Central Europe and this means that all the countries within the region have free trade within the Schengen area. A good example of this is the fact that in the euro area there are countries like Portugal, Ireland, Italy, Belgium and Spain, which have a common trade policy and have open market economies.
Barriers To Trade
The third factor is the political atmosphere of the European Union. There are two types of barriers to trade in Europe, one is the legal barrier and the other is the trade barrier. For instance, a country like Portugal has a low duty on some imported goods like textiles and furniture while other countries like Ireland have high duties on some imports like citrus fruits. These duties on imported goods make it difficult for Portuguese businessmen to ship their goods into Ireland for low duty free imports. If Portugal had no import duties on these imported products, the situation would be totally different. This is how the legal and political environment plays an important role in determining the type of trade between nations in the EU.
The fourth factor which influences the level of international trade in the EU is the internal market competition. A powerful public procurement policy is needed in order to make European companies efficient at the international level. An effective public procurement policy encourages the supply of cheap and quality European goods and services to European consumers at the same time reducing the costs of internal market competition. On the other hand, if the internal market is weak there is a big risk that European companies will not be able to compete with other companies in the global markets.
Strengthening Trade
The fifth and most important factor which influences the level of globalisation is the strength of the European trading system. Most European countries have a very similar trading system and they are connected with each other via a lot of common economic interests. If one country is not able to export the goods which it needs or is unable to acquire the raw materials from other countries then its economy will be badly affected. On the contrary, if a country is able to successfully export its goods then it is likely to boost the other countries’ economy and in the process help out its own economy. This explains why a successful European trade policy is considered by many business managers as a crucial factor for globalisation.
Conclusion
The Commissioner for Trade has also stated that the future of the European Union depends on its ability to continue to pursue its trade policy that is focused on the European consumers. He has acknowledged that the creation of the European economic area was a step towards enlargement and has said that it would not affect the union’s development in the long run. He has also mentioned that the creation of the European single market has been an important step towards European integration, but he indicated that it will not be possible to bring all member states of the European Union into the common trading area without a successful economic policy.
