The European Commission has upgraded its import monitoring system, reconfiguring its “import barometer” to focus on sustained, longer-term increases in imports into the EU.
The barometer gathers up-to-date import data and was originally established in 2025, the Commission said on Wednesday.
The change is intended to improve understanding of the scale and nature of ongoing import increases affecting the EU internal market and their impact on European industry.
The Commission stated that the revised approach is designed to track longer-term patterns in trade flows, rather than sudden surges.
It linked the shift to rising imports driven by industrial overcapacities — where production capacity exceeds demand — which it said is often fuelled by state-led policies and support measures.
The reconfigured tool draws on Eurostat data and will be updated quarterly from this month, the Commission said, adding that it will take a “more aggregate” form.
Companies urged to share market intelligence
European companies were again urged to contribute market intelligence and data to the monitoring work, the Commission declared.
It added that combining the barometer with information from industry would help it assess which products and sectors are being harmed by sustained import increases.
The Commission launched the import surveillance tool on 5 June 2025, later renaming it the import barometer.
It said the tool was introduced to help protect European industry from sudden, potentially disruptive surges in imports, including cases where goods redirected from other markets enter the EU.
Alongside the barometer changes, the Commission said it has published a guide on using “safeguards” — trade measures that can temporarily restrict imports — to complement existing guides on anti-subsidy and anti-dumping investigations.
