Research On EU Internal Service Market Integration

After the end of World War II, France, Italy, the federal republic of Germany, theNetherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, through negotiation, established the EuropeanCoal and Steel Community, which started the pattern of the regional economicintegration. After more than60years’ development, the EU has developed intoincluding28member states, a population of more than500million, the world’s thelargest economy in the world. The success of the EU pattern caught the attention ofthe world, various countries began to follow suit, and all kinds of regional economicintegration organizations were established all over the world. Especially since the1990s, various forms of regional economic integration organizations are springing upall over the world at an alarming rate. Regional economic integration organizationscover almost all the countries and regions. Regional economic cooperation hasbecome the world’s very important measures of economic development.Since the1980s, the EU triggered the service market integration process, a largenumber of policy measures used to promote service market integration have beenmade. Most of these policies have played a positive role and both the level of servicemarket integration and service economy development are increasing day by day. TheEuropean Union has accumulated a wealth of experience with aspect to regionalservices market integration.China is the world’s largest developing country, regarding participating in regionaleconomic cooperation as an important way to realize the economic development. ButChina’s participation in regional economic cooperation level is low, mainlyconcentrated in the field of trade in goods. How to expand regional cooperationdomain to service areas and release the economic potential of economic growth andemployment of services, is subject to be solved in China. Therefore, this articlechooses the EU internal service market integration as the research object, hoping toprovide referential experiences for China to expand cooperation in the field ofregional service.This paper first analyses the related theories of regional economic integration.Second, in the perspective of policies of the European Union to promote servicemarket integration and from both overall and sector aspects,the process of EUinternal service market integration are analyzed; Again, this article not only carrieson the qualitative analysis on the level of the EU internal service market integration,but carries on the quantitative analysis on the level of the EU internal service marketintegration, in the case of EU financial services market; Finally, based on theory ofeconomic integration, the effects of the European Union internal service marketintegration are analyzed. The study found that:First, the treaties signed between EU member states are legal base of the EuropeanUnion policies to promote service market integration. The issues could not belegalized unless EU treaties have the corresponding content. The greatest contribution of EU treaties on promoting service market integration is establishmentof pillar for the EU internal service market integration, namely, freedom to provideservices and freedom of establishment.Second, the degree on EU internal service market integration is far less than thedegree of trade integration and the EU internal service market still exist manybarriers, including not only legal barriers but also illegal barriers.Third, the Service Directive is important policy document of EU to promoteinternal service market integration, covering60%of services. Policies for otherservices integration are mainly manifested in the secondary regulation in specificservices.Fourth, through the qualitative analysis on the level of EU service marketintegration, it found that most of the European Union policies to promote the internalservice market integration have played a positive role and the degree of EU internalservice market integration has significantly increased. But because of the members’implementation delay and excessive legislation, there is still a gap between presentservice market integration and the full integration of the European Union internalservice market.Fifth, through the quantitative analysis of the European financial marketintegration level, it found that before the outbreak of the financial crisis, financialmarket integration of most sectors has reached a higher level. But affected by the USfinancial crisis and European sovereign debt crisis, the European Union financialmarket integration degree encountered somewhat regression.Finally, through the analysis of EU internal service market integration’s influenceon location of service industry, it found that there is higher specialization inaccommodation and fooding, as well as some services related to manufacturing atborder regions between new and old members.