Economy of the European Union
The combined economic activity of the European Union’s member states, shaped by the single market, common policies, and EU institutions.
European Single Market: An integrated economic area in which EU members permit the free movement of goods, services, capital, and people. It enables cross-border trade and investment across much of the Union.
EU competition law: EU rules that prohibit anticompetitive agreements, abuse of dominance, and certain state subsidies. It limits conduct and subsidies that could distort competition across the single market.
Intra-EU trade: Trade in goods and services between EU member states. It reveals the scale of economic exchange within the single market.
National economies of the European Union: The distinct economic systems and performance of individual EU member states. National differences persist beneath shared rules and aggregate EU statistics.
European sovereign debt crisis: A crisis beginning in 2009 in which several euro-area governments faced severe financing pressures. It exposed how financial stress could spread within a currency union.
European Union Customs Union: An arrangement in which EU members remove internal customs duties and apply a common tariff to imports from outside the Union. It gives the single market a shared external tariff for goods.
European Union state aid: Public support to businesses that EU law assesses for compatibility with the internal market. Commission scrutiny constrains how governments can subsidize firms.
European value chain: A production network in which stages of making a good or service occur across European countries. Cross-border production links national industries and spreads disruptions.
European Economic Area: An arrangement extending much of the EU single market to Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway. It shows that single-market participation does not require EU membership.
European migrant crisis: A period of increased migration into Europe, especially in 2015, that challenged EU border and asylum systems. Migration and labor mobility intersect with debates over growth, employment, and distribution.