Women in Europe largely under-represented in international trade, study finds.

Women are under-represented among EU companies in the agriculture and manufacturing sectors and women-led companies are primarily found in sectors with lower export growth potential, according to From Europe to the World: Understanding Challenges for European Businesswomen, a new study by the European Commission and the International Trade Centre.

The study finds that only one in five exporting companies in the EU is owned, led or managed by a woman. In almost half of the companies surveyed, women account for 30% or less of the total workforce and only one in five companies reaches gender parity in employment. It also suggests that job segregation remains a reality: fewer than one in three companies have reached 30% or more of women in senior...