EU, Chinese Trade Chiefs Talk EV Duties, Sanctions

European Commission and Chinese officials met last week for a “frank and constructive” discussion about the EU’s countervailing duty investigation on Chinese electric vehicles, the commission said in a Sept. 20 news release. During the talks, EU trade chief Valdis Dombrovskis and Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao agreed to “instruct their respective teams to put maximum effort to work towards a mutually agreeable solution” and to continue communicating, but Dombrovskis also stressed that the probe is meant to address oversized Chinese subsidies and complies with all World Trade Organization rules.

The talks came just after Wang met with European EV industry representatives and German officials, where he said China will continue to fight against the EU EV tariffs “until the very end” (see 2409190013).

Dombrovskis also expressed “strong concerns” about Chinese probes on imports of European brandy, pork and dairy, stressing that “these investigations are unwarranted, are based on questionable allegations, and lack sufficient evidence,” the commission said. He “called for these investigations to be terminated and informed the Chinese side that the EU will do its utmost to defend the interests of its industries.”

Dombrovskis also told Wang about the EU’s “increasing concerns” about China’s “role in the context of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine,” including its evasion of EU sanctions against Russia.