Friendshoring: A Zeitenwende for the Global Economy?

This workshop co-hosted by AGI and the VDMA (European Machinery and Equipment Manufacturers Association) examined the idea of friendshoring that has been at the center the Biden administration’s trade and investment policies since U.S. Treasury Secretary Yellen called attention to it in an April 2022 speech. The first session, Friendshoring, Resilience, and Derisking: Are We at a Crossroads for the Global Trading System, focused on the direction of international trade policy in 2024 and the outlook after elections in the United States and the European Union. The second session, Defining Partnerships: How Should the U.S. and Germany Friendshore?, looked at the policies governments pursuing using to promote trade with like-minded countries and how, where, and with whom the United States, Germany, and the European Union can and should friendshore their economic and commercial relationships. The workshop was held under the Chatham House rule.

---

Speakers

Karl Haeusgen, President of the VDMA

Emily Benson, Director of the Trade and Technology Project, Center for Strategic and International Studies

Laura von Daniels, Head of the Americas Research Division, Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik/German Institute for International and Security Affairs (Berlin)

Ken Monahan, Vice President of International Economic Affairs, National Association of Manufacturing

Michael Rogers, Deputy Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Europe,

Michael Smart, Managing Director, Rock Creek Global Advisors

Samina Sultan, Trade Economist, Institut der deutschen Wirtschaft/German Economic Institute (Cologne)

Drew Wayne, Director of Tax and Trade, Siemens USA

Andrew Adair, VDMA Trade Advisor for North America, and Peter Rashish, AGI Vice President and Geoeconomics Program Director, were the moderators of the workshop