Editor's Note: This article is part of an ongoing RANE series on the shifting patterns of global trade . Previous installments have examined the Americas , the Strait of Hormuz , Japan and South Korea , India , Turkey , ASEAN countries , Mercosur , Congo and East Africa , as well as broader topics like data flows , maritime chokepoints ( part one and part two ) and digital trade . Ongoing revisions to the European Union's supply-chain due diligence framework reflect a softening of ambitious sustainability goals as competitiveness, economic security and trade diversification take precedence, easing near-term compliance burdens for businesses but maintaining binding ESG obligations, regulatory fragmentation and long-term uncertainty for large companies and high-impact sectors such as energy, agriculture and manufacturing.