Beijing expressed “strong opposition” this Friday to the European Union’s decision to impose additional taxes on Chinese electric vehicles, according to the Chinese Ministry of Commerce.
“China firmly opposes the EU’s unfair, incompatible and shameful protectionist practices in this case and firmly opposes the EU’s imposition of anti-subsidy duties on Chinese electric vehicles,” according to the ministry.
The ministry urged EU countries to “return to normal”resolving trade tensions through dialogue, and warned that it will “safeguard the interests of Chinese companies.”
For the Chinese Chamber of Commerce in the European Union, the imposition of high tariffs “It will not only harm Chinese companies,” but also “European and multinational companies with operations in China”.
The imposition “will not improve the resilience of the local European industry” and could “deter future Chinese investments in Europeharming the competitiveness of the European market and weakening the global supply chain of electric vehicles,” the same source warned.
The Chinese automobile giant Geely indicated that “this decision risks damaging economic and trade relations between the EU and China.”
In a vote held this Friday, the 27 confirmed the imposition of customs duties on electric cars imported from China, despite the german oppositionwho fear a trade war with Beijing.
The European Commission now has carte blanche to add to the 10% tax already in force a surcharge that can reach up to 35% on battery-powered vehicles manufactured in China. These compensation rights are expected to come into force at the end of October.
In detail, the additional taxes will amount to 7.8% for Tesla, 17% for BYD, 18.8% for Geely and 35.3% for SAIC, according to a final document sent to member countries on September 27. .
The stated goal is to restore a level playing field with manufacturers accused of benefiting from significant public subsidies.
The imposition of taxes is also intended defend the European car industry and its approximately 14 million jobs against practices considered unfair and identified during a long investigation by the Commission.
The application of tariffs began in July on a provisional basis, when Brussels decided to impose customs duties of up to 36.3% on the car manufacturer SAIC, 19.3% on Geely and 17% on BYD, alleging that they receive subsidies that harm EU manufacturers.
The tariffs also affect imports from Western manufacturers that produce in China, such as Telsa, Dacio and BMW, which would be taxed at 21%.
In June, in response to the tariffs, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce announced an “anti-dumping” investigation into EU pork or offal (both chilled and frozen), as well as pork fat and by-products, a measure that could end up affecting Spain. the main exporter of pork to China, both at EU level and globally.
According to data from Chinese customs, in 2023 the Asian giant imported 1,537 million dollars of these products from Spain.
The conclusions of this investigation are expected to be known within a year, although the process may be extended for another six months “in special circumstances.”
In addition to pork, Beijing announced in August an anti-subsidy investigation into certain imports of dairy products from the EU, affecting, among others, Ireland, Austria, Belgium, Italy, Croatia, Finland, Romania and the Czech Republic.
Source: Observadora
