The Impact of the TRIPS Agreement on Trade Between China and the European Union: Revisiting Intellectual Property Protection in the Digital Economy

Abstract

The Impact of the TRIPS Agreement on Trade Between China and the European Union: Revisiting Intellectual Property Protection in the Digital Economy. The Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS Agreement) has become a cornerstone of the global intellectual property system and an essential component of international trade governance. Since China's accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO), trade between China and the European Union has expanded substantially, accompanied by an increasing number of intellectual property disputes and growing regulatory complexity. Against this background, this paper revisits the impact of the TRIPS Agreement on China–EU trade from the perspective of intellectual property protection and the evolving digital economy. Building upon the author's original research completed in 2018, this revised study adopts a comparative analytical approach to examine the legal frameworks, enforcement mechanisms, and institutional differences between China and the European Union. It further discusses how the TRIPS framework influences bilateral trade, technology transfer, market competition, and innovation, while considering emerging challenges associated with digital trade, data-driven economic activities, and the rapid development of new technologies. The paper argues that although the TRIPS Agreement has contributed to the harmonization of international intellectual property standards and the expansion of China–EU economic cooperation, differences in legal implementation, corporate intellectual property awareness, and institutional capacity continue to generate trade frictions. It concludes that strengthening bilateral dialogue, improving intellectual property governance, promoting evidence-based policy analysis, and enhancing professional expertise will be essential to supporting sustainable economic cooperation in the digital era.