On 8 and 9 October 2026, Maroš Šefčovič, European Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security, and Commissioner for Interinstitutional Relations and Transparency, went to Beijing, China, where he co-chaired, alongside Wang Wentao, Chinese Minister for Commerce, the second meeting of the China–EU Consultation Mechanism on Trade and Investment, which led to a consensus on 16 key points relating to balanced trade, intellectual property rights, WTO reform and export controls. The mission resulted in three concrete provisional breakthroughs, namely a moderation in Chinese exports of hybrid and plug-in hybrid cars to the EU, a reduction in customs duties to facilitate market access to the Chinese market for certain European products, and a simplification of the process for granting Chinese export licences for rare earths and permanent magnets. On the sidelines of these high-level negotiations, the European Commissioner also held talks with He Lifeng, Chinese Deputy Prime Minister, to reaffirm the need to maintain more balanced bilateral relations.