BEIJING: Beijing said on Wednesday (Oct 30) it had lodged a complaint with the World Trade Organization over the European Union’s decision to impose hefty tariffs on Chinese-made electric cars.
The extra taxes of up to 35 per cent were announced Tuesday after an EU probe found Chinese state subsidies were undercutting European automakers, but the move has faced opposition from Germany and Hungary, which fear provoking Beijing’s ire and setting off a bitter trade war.
China slammed Brussels’s decision on Wednesday morning, saying it did not “agree with or accept” the tariffs and had filed a complaint under the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) dispute settlement mechanism.
“China will… take all necessary measures to firmly protect the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese companies,” Beijing’s commerce ministry said.
EU trade chief Valdis Dombrovskis said Tuesday that “by adopting these proportionate and targeted measures after a rigorous investigation, we’re standing up for fair market practices and for the European industrial base”.
“We welcome competition, including in the electric vehicle sector, but it must be underpinned by fairness and a level playing field,” he said.
But Germany’s main auto industry association warned the tariffs heightened the risk of “a far-reaching trade conflict”, while a Chinese trade group slammed the “politically motivated” decision even as it urged dialogue between the two sides.
The duties will come on top of the current 10 per cent on imports of electric vehicles from China.
The decision became law following its publication in the EU’s official journal on Tuesday, and the duties will enter into force from Wednesday.
Once they do, the tariffs will be definitive and last for five years.
The extra duties also apply, at various rates, to vehicles made in China by foreign groups such as Tesla, which faces a tariff of 7.8 per cent.
Chinese car giant Geely – one of the country’s largest sellers of EVs – faces an extra duty of 18.8 per cent, while SAIC will be hit with the highest at 35.3 per cent.
