The EU has made significant strides on many of its sustainable development goals, according to a 2026 monitoring of EU progress released Wednesday by the EU’s statistics agency Eurostat.
The EU exported €199.6 billion worth of goods to China in 2025, while it imported €559.4 billion, resulting in a trade deficit of €359.8 billion, according to figures from Eurostat.
The EU’s trade in goods balance registered a surplus of €128 billion in 2025, representing a decrease of €8 billion compared with 2024 (€136 billion), according to Eurostat.
47.3 per cent of the electricity generated in the EU came from renewable energy sources in 2025, a slight increase from 2024 (47.2%), according to Eurostat.
Life expectancy at birth in the EU was 81.5 years in 2024, a 0.1-year increase from 2023, following decreases in 2020 (80.4 years) and 2021 (80.1 years) due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
More than a third (35.4%) of online shoppers in the EU reported encountering problems while making purchases through a website or an app in 2025, according to data from Eurostat.
35.2 per cent of all managerial positions in the EU were held by women in 2024, up from 31.8% in 2014 according to figures just released by the EU’s statistics agency Eurostat.
