French President Emmanuel Macron travels to China today for his fourth official visit, as Europe seeks to balance the economic and security threats from Beijing with its reliance on the world's second-largest economy during a period of global trade turmoil. According to analysts, Macron has previously sought to show a united European front in dealing with China, while being careful not to provoke Beijing. Noah Barkin, a China specialist at Rhodium Group, told Reuters: "He (Macron) needs to make clear to the Chinese leadership that Europe will respond to the growing economic and security threats from Beijing, while avoiding escalation to a full-blown trade war and diplomatic collapse." He added, "It's not easy to convey this message." Macron will begin his visit by touring the Forbidden City in Beijing and will meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping tomorrow in the Chinese capital, before they meet again the day after during a visit to Chengdu in Sichuan province in southwest China. Macron's visit comes after a trip by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen last July, which was marred by tensions, when she said EU-China relations were at a "turning point." British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz are also expected to visit China early next year. Trade tensions between China and Europe have escalated with the influx of cheap Chinese exports, particularly in the steel sector, to wide swathes of European industry. There is also growing concern in Europe about China's growing technological lead in the electric vehicle sector and its dominance in processing rare earth elements, which could threaten supplies to vital European industrial sectors. Amid increasing pressure on global trade due to tariffs imposed by Washington, Beijing is seizing the opportunity to present itself as a trading partner in a bid to allay European concerns about China's support for Russia and its state-backed industrial model. Advisors to Macron said before the visit that he would push to rebalance trade dynamics so that China boosts domestic consumption, and they expressed hope for a "sharing of gains from innovation" so that Europe gains access to Chinese technology. To address growing concerns about trade with China, the European Union is expected to unveil a new economic security mechanism that could allow the bloc to use its trade tools more aggressively against Beijing. France has backed the European Commission's move to raise tariffs on electric vehicle imports from China. Sources in the aviation sector said that despite Airbus recently opening a new final assembly line in China, it is unlikely to secure a long-awaited order for 500 planes during Macron's visit. Such deals give Beijing leverage against Washington, which is pushing for new commitments to buy planes from U.S. Boeing. Trade tensions between China and Europe have escalated with the influx of cheap Chinese exports to wide swathes of European industry.
