The European Commission’s proposal to impose definitive countervailing duties on imports of electric vehicles from China received a “green light” from the member states, the Commission announced, according to which this is another step towards the completion of the Commission’s investigation against the subsidies.
At the same time, it is stated in the Commission’s announcement, the EU and China continue to work hard to explore an alternative solution that should be fully compatible with the WTO, sufficient to address the injurious subsidy determined by the Commission’s investigation, to be monitored and be enforced.
The Commission’s implementing regulation, containing the final findings of the investigation, must be published in the Official Journal by 30 October 2024 at the latest.
The EU initially announced it would impose higher tariffs on Chinese electric vehicle imports in June, arguing that they benefit “heavily from unfair subsidies” and pose a “threat of economic injury” to electric vehicle producers in Europe.
Temporary tariffs came into force at the beginning of July, while along the way, in September the Commission revised their amount, based on “documented comments on the temporary measures” from the interested parties.
A spokesman for China’s commerce ministry said Beijing continues to believe the investigation into China’s subsidies to its electric vehicle industry has reached “prejudiced conclusions”, adding that the EU promotes unfair competition.
Division in the EU
Today’s decision has been preceded by months of discussions among EU member states, which have expressed differing views on the increase in tariffs on Chinese-made electrical imports.
While France has been a big supporter, previously pushing the EU to launch investigations into possible tariffs, Germany has come out against them, raising concerns about the consequences for its own struggling carmakers.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Petar Szijjártó said on Thursday his country would veto a European Commission proposal proposing tariffs of up to 45 percent, Reuters reported.
A key concern for some European countries is potential Chinese retaliation against European exports, all the more so as China has already launched anti-dumping investigations into EU pork and cognac exports, as well as an investigation into European dairy subsidies .
Source: ot.gr
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