Launched on Tuesday for two days, the second meeting of the G7 Commerce under the French presidency in 2026 is an opportunity for ministers to discuss in particular industrial overcapacity, economic security and cross-border online commerce.

Published on: 06/05/2026 - 01:11 Modified on: 06/05/2026 - 01:11

Industrial overcapacity, critical minerals, WTO reform and small parcels will be on the agenda for discussions by G7 trade ministers, a two-day meeting that began Tuesday May 5 in Paris.

The G7 Commerce, the second under French presidency this year, after a first meeting by videoconference in February, is being held in a very tense global context. Maritime traffic is almost paralyzed in the strategic Strait of Hormuz and Washington is threatening customs duties of 25% on vehicles imported from the European Union.

This last question is being addressed on the sidelines of the G7, which began on Tuesday with an informal section where the commercial repercussions of the war in the Middle East will be discussed, indicated the office of the French Minister Delegate for Foreign Trade, Nicolas Forissier.

White House Trade Representative Jamieson Greer was due to meet European Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic in the French capital. He was also due to meet with Nicolas Forissier and the French Minister of the Economy, Roland Lescure.

The EU is “ready for all scenarios”

On Friday, American President Donald Trump accused the EU of not respecting the trade agreement signed in 2025 between the two sides of the Atlantic, accusations rejected by Brussels.

The European Parliament approved this agreement, conditionally, but the bloc's internal procedures provide for the agreement to still be negotiated with member states before being formally applied.

The EU is "ready for all scenarios", said the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, on Tuesday.

If the threat materializes, French President Emmanuel Macron called on the EU to "activate" its anti-coercion instrument, which makes it possible to limit imports from a country or its access to certain public markets and to block certain investments.

Four priorities

On Wednesday, trade ministers from the group of seven industrialized countries (Germany, Canada, United States, France, Italy, Japan and United Kingdom) will discuss the "four priorities" identified by the French presidency of the G7.

With China in the background, the first is the fight against industrial overcapacity with the objective of achieving "a collective and effective response" to "correct practices which distort competition", according to the firm.

Second priority: economic security, particularly in terms of critical minerals, by ensuring access to these “strategic” assets – essential for example in the manufacturing of semiconductors, electric vehicle batteries or weapons systems – and by diversifying sources of supply.

"We are in an era, indeed, which is marked by economic uncertainty; securing our value chains (...) is not only a political objective, it is also a precondition for sustainable growth, for stability", commented Nicolas Forissier during an event organized by the employers' organization Medef on Tuesday.

The hope of a joint statement

Recalling that Washington considered trade policy as "domestic policy", Jamieson Greer stressed that "the United States acts unilaterally, but also with willing partners", in a video broadcast at the same event.

“The situation demands bold actions from the private and public sectors to address a range of urgent challenges,” he continued, citing structural trade imbalances, or “risks to national economic security resulting from a U.S. industrial base weakened by years of neglect.”

“We consider that the priorities pursued by France as host country of the G7 this year are complementary to American efforts in trade matters,” he added.

The meeting on Wednesday will also focus on the reform of the World Trade Organization (WTO), after the organization's conference in Yaoundé in March which failed to reach agreements on several major issues.

In a context of commercial opposition between great powers, "the objective is for this organization to be better adapted to the current challenges" of world trade, underlined the firm.

Cross-border online commerce will be the fourth priority, with the aim of better regulating the exchange of small parcels which have developed significantly. A “compendium of good practices” could be published on this occasion. But "having a common communiqué" at the end of this G7 Trade would already constitute a "concrete result", which was not always achieved during previous presidencies, the same source indicated.

With AFP

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