Brussels, 10/11/2010 (Agence Europe) - The priorities of the new EU trade strategy set out by Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht on 9 November (see EUROPE 10253) reflect the concerns of ordinary European citizens, as assessed by a Eurobarometer survey published by the European Commission on Wednesday. EUROPE presents the main findings of the survey which saw 26,635 people in the 27 member states questioned on their views between August and September.
Generally, two thirds (65%) of European citizens believe that the EU benefits greatly from international trade. It is in traditionally free-trade nations (Denmark, Netherlands, Sweden and United Kingdom) that this is most strongly felt. Overall, citizens agree that the breadth of choice and lower cost of goods are great benefits.
Half of Europeans know where the goods or services they buy are from. They are more attentive for certain articles (62% for foodstuffs) than for others (44% for high tech products). While place of origin influences purchasing decisions for almost a third of Europeans, the majority (53%) are not prepared to pay more for goods or services just because they come from their own country (compared with 41% who are prepared to pay the higher price). Finland, Sweden, Denmark, France and the United Kingdom are the countries where people are more willing to spend more on national products.
For most Europeans, the EU is the main global player in international trade. Almost two thirds of those surveyed think that European goods and services are competitive compared with those from third countries. Europeans are, however, less confident about the future role of the EU in world trade, with almost 45% believing that, in the future, the EU will be a second rate economic power, and 70% expressing the view that the future will belong to the emerging economies.
On average, more than six Europeans in 10 consider that the new EU trade policy should make job creation its priority (61%). This percentage is even higher in Cyprus, Spain, Greece, Hungary, Slovakia and Portugal. (E.H./transl.rt)