VDMA European Office - vdma.eu

The EU Pay Transparency Directive comes at an inopportune time. Small and medium-sized enterprises in particular are being unduly burdened with new reporting obligations. The German government must work hard to abolish this directive.

VDMA calls on the EU and Australia to swiftly conclude the Free Trade Agreement and thus send another positive signal.

The EU and India have concluded negotiations on a Free Trade Agreement. This could be a “game changer” for the engineering industry. What steps are now necessary for the agreement to enter into force?

The High-Tech Agenda Germany sets new research policy priorities. What is behind the agenda? What significance does it have for the mechanical and plant engineering industry? How is the VDMA involved in its implementation?

Geopolitical tensions, tougher competition and new trade barriers are challenging the European mechanical engineering industry. Against this backdrop, VDMA, ZVEI and Deutsche Messe AG are organizing the European Policy Reception at Hannover Messe 2026.

In many cases, Europe is no longer competitive as a business location. The EU must therefore not get lost in 'local content' debates. Instead, it is about setting Europe's course towards growth and competitiveness.

The EU-Parliament has finalized its recommendations for a 28th regime. Among other things, the Parliament supports a broader scope of application and a minimum capital requirement of one euro.

The EU-Parliament has referred the agreement with Mercosur to the EU-Court of Justice for review. From VDMA's point of view, the trade agreement should nevertheless be provisionally applied in the near future to create planning security.

The EU report on the internal market clearly shows the urgent need for action in Europe. The internal market remains fragmented, private investment is declining and the EU is making slow progress in reducing regulatory hurdles.

The EU's free trade agreement with India sends out a very important signal in favor of rules-based trade and against the law of the jungle. The elimination of customs duties and technical barriers to trade provides an urgently needed boost to competition.

The European Parliament's Mercosur decision is completely incomprehensible and complicates the process considerably. Small and medium-sized industrial companies urgently need EU free trade agreements that also come into force.

During its EU Presidency, Cyprus plans to focus on issues such as defense, migration and Ukraine, but also on topics that are particularly relevant to mechanical engineering.

The EU-Commission's proposal to combat overcapacity in the steel sector has been presented. In the view of the VDMA, this proposal must also involve European steel consumers, who must not be burdened with additional costs and more bureaucracy.

The free trade agreement between the EU and Mercosur is of the utmost importance for European industry. The EU Council of Ministers must act now and give its approval.

The European Commission has established a platform to make it easier for European companies to access strategic raw materials.

The EU wants to include more products in the scope of CBAM. This means more effort and costs for European companies - a wrong signal in times of growing global trade disputes.

The trilogue meeting on the eDeclaration scheduled for 8 December has been postponed. VDMA is committed to ensuring that negotiations on the final wording are concluded as soon as possible.

The Council must now deliver and ratify the Mercosur trade agreement. After years of negotiations, a clear commitment to free trade and reliable partnerships is needed.

The EU sustainability omnibus package was adopted with the urgently needed adjustments. A strong signal for more legal certainty and practicable solutions for our small and medium-sized industry.

The EU-Commission has published a proposal for a Regulation on the establishment of European Business Wallets. What are the main elements of this proposal?

The EU Commission is taking the right path with the environmental omnibus. It will finally bring real relief for small and medium-sized industrial companies.

With the ResourceEU plan, the EU Commission wants to make Europe less dependent on raw material imports from China. In particular, the development of Europe's own production and processing capacities for critical raw materials is essential in the medium term.

The EU Parliament has taken the right step with the Deforestation Regulation, now it's up to the trialogue. In order for there to finally be planning certainty, the relief proposed by the Commission must be adopted swiftly.

Approximately 40 percent of our exports to the U.S. are affected by tariffs on steel and aluminum derivatives. VDMA is working to find a solution to these trade barriers with our most important export market.

With the Digital Omnibus, the EU wants to tackle three laws at the same time and thus create initial relief for the industry. However, this is not enough to ensure Europe's competitiveness as a digital location.

Industry in Europe must finally be noticeably relieved of bureaucracy. MEPs are therefore called upon to push through the sustainability omnibus package now.

The European Commission presented its work programme for 2026. It sets the course for a forward-looking EU climate and energy policy.

The focus of the EU-Commission's work program for 2026 is on reducing bureaucracy, affordable housing and increasing investment in defence.

Europe must become less dependent on raw material imports. The EU action plan, which aims to reduce dependence on China, would be an important step in this direction. The focus must also be on the European production of critical raw materials.

The EU member states must finally put their commitments to strengthening competitiveness into action. The proposals for adapting the Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) point in the right direction.

The US tariffs on steel and aluminum are a huge burden on the European mechanical engineering industry. They need to be renegotiated. This is because they contradict the spirit of the tariff deal concluded between the EU and the USA in Scotland.

The EU-Commission has published the formal withdrawal of the AILD proposal in the EU Official Journal. The VDMA welcomes this official step.

The EU's Apply AI strategy is sending out the right signals: artificial intelligence must be used where it creates real benefits - in the real economy. Mechanical engineering is the linchpin here.

The EU Commission has launched a survey on the Digital Omnibus—a law that aims to simplify EU digital regulations. The VDMA is participating and calling upon the EU to be bold in simplifying.

Three political groups in the European Parliament are blocking the urgently needed simplification of sustainability reports. Europe's competitiveness must not become a plaything of ideological interests.

The EU and India want to conclude negotiations on a Free Trade Agreement by the end of this year. VDMA would welcome such an agreement, provided that key demands of the European machinery and equipment manufacturing industry are also considered.

The EU has a range of trade policy instruments at its disposal to ensure a level playing field for German and European companies in trade with China.

Two Committees of the European Parliament have approved the negotiating mandate on the eDeclaration. VDMA hopes that the trilogue negotiations between the EU institutions can now begin promptly.

Instead of promoting innovation in the single market, EU digital laws have become hurdles in many places. The EU legislator must therefore use the digital omnibus to fundamentally correct digital regulation.

EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is building on Europe's industrial strength. To achieve this, however, the poor customs deal with the USA must be renegotiated.

The agreement on CBAM simplification is an important step, but the extension to downstream sectors should be taken off the table. And the technical specifications are still missing.

At the start of the IAA, the VDMA is sounding the alarm: Europe is at risk of being left behind in strategically important battery cell production. A 5-point plan for Europe must be implemented now.

The EU and Indonesia finalised on 23 September 2025 the negotiations on a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA). VDMA welcomes this, as our export-oriented industry needs new markets.

The slight easing in order books in July is not a trend reversal: The hoped-for momentum in investments in mechanical engineering is still lacking. The promised relief must therefore come in the fall.

The EU proposes tariff exemption for US products - while punitive tariffs are extended to European machinery. The EU Commission urgently needs to renegotiate; mechanical engineering products must be permanently exempted from sectoral tariffs.

The EU's omnibus package on sustainability is intended to protect small and medium-sized industrial companies from excessive reporting obligations. This goal must no longer be watered down in the European Parliament.

The so-called 28th regime is intended to facilitate the establishment of companies in other EU Member States under simplified conditions. The EU-Commission is now consulting with stakeholders on its legislative proposal.

The budget of the EU research program Horizon Europe has almost doubled - a positive signal. However, horizontal key technologies such as robotics, industrial AI and production technologies must be given greater consideration.

VDMA emphasized during its discussions in Brussels in particular the importance of better framework conditions so that Europe can compete with China and the United States.

The VDMA welcomes the EU Commission's plan to strengthen the data economy. However, any measures must remain voluntary and must not lead to forced data exchange and further bureaucratic burdens.