The European Commission shocked China on Wednesday by imposing duties of up to 38.1 percent on electric vehicle imports from July 4 — a level that was much higher than expected — potentially triggering a trade war at a time of great political uncertainty in Europe.
The provisional duties, which come after a months-long investigation into Chinese state aid to its EV-makers, drew immediate condemnation from Beijing, which has already threatened retaliation against European farmers and plane makers and launched an anti-dumping probe targeting the French spirits industry.
“When our partners breach the rules, we will assert our rights,” EU trade chief Valdis Dombrovskis said in a written statement shared with reporters.
A senior EU official said Chinese EVs “are subsidized from mine to EU harbor,” because Beijing has pumped money into mining lithium, refining metals, steel-making, production of batteries and cars and shipping them to Rotterdam or Hamburg.
In a first response, the Chinese Chamber of Commerce to the EU expressed its “shock, grave disappointment and deep dissatisfaction with this protectionist measure by the [European Commission]” and denounced the anti-subsidy investigation as a “witch hunt.”
@ISIDEWITH4wks4W
Bạn có nghĩ rằng việc các quốc gia trợ cấp cho các ngành công nghiệp của họ để làm cho chúng cạnh tranh mạnh hơn trên thị trường quốc tế là công bằng, ngay cả khi nó làm biến dạng thương mại toàn cầu không?