US and China tensions could herald new troubles for Europe’s economy, Volkswagen’s woes

“There's no doubt that Trump will do something to Germany because he's been very clear that he's targeting Germany's surplus. So that definitely will be a rough ride,” Sander Tordoir, chief economist at the Centre for European Reform (CER), told Euractiv.

However, Tordoir noted that Trump’s re-election could also incentivise Beijing to attempt to seek closer ties with Brussels.

“I could see [the Chinese] saying: ‘Listen, we won't impose [retaliatory] tariffs on Europe,’” he said. “It [would be a] sign of political goodwill to see if they can peel the Europeans a little bit off the US, which is a strategic game that they have.”