Press
The other trade war
26 May 2026
Financial Times
Sander Tordoir, chief economist at the Centre for European Reform, a think-tank, warns her not to skirt around recent tensions: “If Reiche pretends like this is a 2016, not 2026, China trip, Chinese diplomats will put Germany in checkmate before the conversation starts.”
The European cars made in China
22 May 2026
Financial Times
Sander Tordoir, chief economist at the Centre for European Reform, says there is “a real risk that significant chunks of the engineering, production, innovation and supply chains in automotive will end up concentrating even more heavily in China”.
“The EU has to decide whether it is willing to confront China with a tougher trade and industrial policy . . . that incentivises not only Chinese producers to produce in Europe, but also their own car multinationals to continue producing in Europe.”
“The EU has to decide whether it is willing to confront China with a tougher trade and industrial policy . . . that incentivises not only Chinese producers to produce in Europe, but also their own car multinationals to continue producing in Europe.”
Wat één Chinees bedrijfje zegt over de zwakte van Europa’s buitenlandbeleid
22 May 2026
NRC Handelsblad
Neem dit rapport waarin economen van het Centre for European Reform beargumenteren dat Europa, Duitsland voorop, op dit moment ten prooi vallen aan ‘China Shock 2.0’. De eerste zette twee decennia geleden de kaalslag van de Amerikaanse industrie in gang (overigens mede doordat Amerikaanse bedrijven naar China verkasten).
„Aggressiver Kurs“ – China-Schock alarmiert deutsche Politik
21 May 2026
Handelsblatt
Auslöser der Debatte ist eine eindringliche Warnung der Denkfabrik Center for European Reform. Deutschland ist demnach das „Epizentrum“ eines neuen „China-Schocks“. Der Studie der Ökonomen Sander Tordoir und Brad Setser zufolge dringen chinesische Unternehmen immer tiefer in die bisherigen Domänen der deutschen Industrie vor: in die Autoproduktion, den Maschinenbau, die Chemie und die Luftfahrt.
Bre-entry may be the next drama to grip the European Union
21 May 2026
The Economist
In practice, says Charles Grant of the Centre for European Reform, a think-tank in London, the EU would want to see broad agreement across party lines in Britain before discussing re-entry terms, so that tomorrow’s ministers did not unpick a deal reached by today’s.
„Deutschland ist das Epizentrum des zweiten China-Schocks“
20 May 2026
Handelsblatt
„Deutschland ist das Epizentrum des zweiten China-Schocks“, schreiben die Autoren Sander Tordoir und Brat Setser des Thinktanks für EU-Politik Center for European Reform (CER) aus London in ihrer neuen Studie „China-Schock 2.0 – die Kosten der Selbstzufriedenheit Deutschlands“, die dem Handelsblatt vorab liegt.
Germany urged to stop admiring Beijing and wake up to ‘China Shock 2.0’
20 May 2026
The Guardian
Germany must stop admiring China’s success in the EU or it will sleepwalk into the kind of deindustrialisation the US experienced 25 years ago, a leading think-tank has said.With China’s surplus with Germany having doubled between 2024 and 2025 from $12bn (£9bn) to $25bn, creating a $94bn trade imbalance, the Centre for European Reform (CER) said Europe’s largest economy risked a repeat of what happened in the US in 2001 when a sudden surge in imports permanently hollowed out towns in the American midwest.
‘Phantom limb’: Report blames China shock for Germany’s industrial malaise
20 May 2026
South China Morning Post
According to the report from influential think tank the Centre for European Reform, the “China shock is now the most important cause of Germany’s malaise” – even if “it is the one Berlin remains least willing to confront”.The report’s authors, economists Sander Tordoir and Brad Setser, described the effect on Germany as Phantomschmerz, or phantom limb – “a pain felt where something vital has already been lost”.
Experten warnen Deutschland vor China-Schock
20 May 2026
Focus
Die Misere der deutschen Industrie ist laut einer britischen Denkfabrik weitgehend die Folge einer aggressiven Wirtschafts- und Handelspolitik Pekings. Das geht aus einem Bericht des Centre for European Reform mit dem Titel „China-Schock 2.0: Die Kosten deutscher Nachlässigkeit“ hervor.
Denkfabrik: China schadet unserer Wirtschaft – Deutschland unternimmt zu wenig
20 May 2026
Deutschlandfunk
Das Handelsblatt zitiert aus einer Analyse der Denkfabrik ”Centre for European Reform”. Demnach nehmen chinesische Unternehmen in Kernbranchen wie der Autoindustrie oder dem Maschinenbau den Konkurrenten aus Deutschland schnell Marktanteile ab. Dies geschehe in China selbst, in Staaten außerhalb der EU und auch auf dem europäischen Heimatmarkt. Deutschland habe durch den Aufstieg von Chinas Exportwirtschaft bereits rund 400.000 Jobs verloren.
„Für ihn ist es zu wenig, zu spät“ – Keir Starmer mit Labour auf dem Weg ins „Tal des Todes“
16 May 2026
Die Welt
Sollte Starmer den Aufstand gegen ihn überstehen, stünde er vor der Entscheidung, ob er eine umfassende Wiederanbindung versprechen will – mit dem Vorschlag, dass das Vereinigte Königreich als Schritt zur Reintegration wieder der Zollunion beitritt. ...Das, sagt Charles Grant vom Centre for European Reform, „hat größere Chancen, den Ausschlag zu verändern, weil die Europäer dieses Angebot viel ernster nehmen müssten“.
Can Hungary’s Magyar deliver on his promises of reform and restore a relationship to the EU?
13 May 2026
The Guardian
Zselyke Csaky at the Centre for European Reform think-tank suggests both Brussels and Budapest will have to tread carefully over hitting deadlines. While Magyar has a parliamentary majority to rewrite the constitution, rushing major changes would feel too much like the previous administration: “It is just not a good look if a constitutional amendment is pushed through without much consultation, so that’s basically the limiting factor in Hungary’s case.”
CER podcast: Unpacking Europe: How Europe is responding in Lebanon and Palestine
13 May 2026
Thomas Maddock spoke with Zizette Darkazally and Schams El Ghoneimi about Europe's response to conflict in Lebanon and Palestine.
Labour losses rattle EU reset
11 May 2026
Politico
Ian Bond of the Centre for European Reform, a think tank devoted to making the EU work better, has warned a Farage clause will cloud any fresh start and probably would be a waste of time as a Prime Minister Farage would simply refuse to pay any financial compensation. Bond has argued the EU should forego a Farage clause “if it wishes future UK governments to see closer alignment as being in their own interest.”
How energy prices are driving demand for solar panels and heat pumps
08 May 2026
The New York Times
“Households are now seeing that they are only one Trump-ignited war away from very expensive tank refueling or heating bills,” said Elisabetta Cornago, an energy and climate policy expert at the Centre for European Reform.
The Monocle Daily: One year of Friedrich Merz
07 May 2026
Armida van Rij joined Quentin Peel to assess Germany's Friedrich Merz one year into his chancellorship on The Monocle Daily.
Taking the Pulse: Is it worth it for Europeans to placate Trump?
07 May 2026
Carnegie Europe
A year and change into President Trump’s second term, it has become abundantly clear that appeasement only leads to short-term wins.
«Un retour à court terme du Royaume-Uni dans l’UE n’est politiquement pas réaliste»
07 May 2026
Le Temps
Le premier ministre britannique, Keir Starmer, multiplie les mesures pour rapprocher son pays de Bruxelles, par «intérêt national» pour contrer les effets désastreux du Brexit. Mais la question européenne reste ultrasensible outre-Manche. L'analyse de Charles Grant, directeur du Centre for European Reform.
CER podcast: Unpacking Europe: Is the EU-US trade deal unravelling?
06 May 2026
Anton Spisak spoke with Sam Lowe about the renewed EU-US trade tensions.
Pacific Council: Europe's Future in Focus: Security, growth, and the challenge of unity
06 May 2026
The Pacific Council hosted a webinar on the challenges and prospects shaping Europe's future with Charles Grant and David Andrews.