ABSTRACT
The dynamics of widening and deepening through successive enlargements and Treaties have combined to give the EU27 an impressive global capacity and weight. The European Union has a population base of close to 500 million which, though ageing, represents the third largest in the world after China and India and is twice as large as that of the United States. It is the world’s richest single market. It has established the single currency, the euro, the world’s second most important reserve currency. Collectively it is the world’s largest trader in terms of share of global trade and has a broadly equivalent share of global GDP. It carries real weight in global trade negotiations and standard-setting.
