Consultations announced – tariffs would apply from July 4.
Provisional import tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles could apply in the European Union from July 4. The EU wants to defend itself against “world markets being flooded with cheaper Chinese electric cars,” as Commission President Ursula von der Leyen put it. To avert the levies after all, China’s Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao and Valdis Dombrovskis, Vice President of the European Commission, announced consultations over the weekend, as reported by the state-affiliated Global Times, among others. The first talks could take place as early as today, Monday, writes German news outlet Handelsblatt, citing well-informed circles in Brussels. However, they are skeptical that China will fundamentally change its subsidy policy, which generously promotes the EV industry. For their part, Chinese car manufacturers have already urged a response to the punitive tariffs. They are calling for temporary tariffs on large-displacement petrol vehicles imported from Europe, as the news portal Electrive reports.
According to figures from the German Federal Statistical Office, more than 40 percent of EVs imported to Germany between January and April came from China.
Photo: iStock/AlessandroPhoto
