ABSTRACT
Since China and the EEC, the forerunner of the EU, established diplomatic relations in 1975, great progress has been made in their bilateral commercial relations. Today commercial ties between China and the EU not only are the core elements of their relationship and central to their interests, but also serve as the driving force for development of their relationship as a whole. However, obstacles to the development of their commercial relations still remain. Many of the obstacles result from entrenched institutions on both sides, and thus are difficult to overcome. The further development of bilateral commercial relations depends, to an extent, on whether China and the EU will be able to overcome these obstacles.
