EU trade gap with China grows as imports surge in 2025

The European Union recorded a €359.8 billion trade deficit with China in 2025, as imports continued to outpace exports, according to Eurostat.

The data showed that EU exports to China totalled €199.6 billion, while imports from China reached €559.4 billion.

This resulted in a significant imbalance in goods trade between the EU and China, reflecting strong demand for Chinese products within the bloc.

Compared with 2024, EU exports to China declined by 6.5 per cent, while imports increased by 6.4 per cent.

Over the longer term, the figures revealed that trade between the EU and China has expanded considerably since 2015, although imports have grown at a much faster pace.

EU exports rose by 37.1 per cent from €145.6 billion in 2015, while imports surged by 89.0 per cent from €295.9 billion.

A breakdown of exports showed that machinery and mechanical appliances remained the EU’s top export category to China, accounting for €45.3 billion.

This represented 22.7 per cent of all EU exports to China in 2025.

Electrical machinery and related equipment followed, with exports valued at €29.0 billion, accounting for 14.5 per cent.

Vehicles, excluding railway or tramway stock, contributed €16.4 billion, representing 8.2 per cent of total exports.

Optical, photographic, cinematographic, precision, medical and surgical instruments accounted for €15.1 billion, or 7.5 per cent.

Pharmaceutical products completed the top five export categories at €13.6 billion, representing 6.8 per cent.

Together, these five groups made up 59.8 per cent of all EU exports to China, underlining the concentration of trade in key industrial sectors.

On the import side, electrical machinery and related equipment dominated EU imports from China, reaching €164.9 billion.

This category alone accounted for 29.5 per cent of all imports from China.

Machinery and mechanical appliances followed at €106.5 billion, representing 19.0 per cent, while organic chemicals ranked third, with imports valued at €34.1 billion, or 6.1 per cent.

What is more, vehicles, excluding railway or tramway stock, accounted for €29.9 billion, representing 5.4 per cent.

Furniture, lighting, bedding, mattresses and prefabricated buildings contributed €21.3 billion, equivalent to 3.8 per cent.

These five categories together represented 63.8 per cent of all EU imports from China, highlighting the strong reliance on Chinese manufacturing across multiple sectors.