EU and China begin talks on EV price deal
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The news: The European Union and China have agreed to look into setting minimum prices of Chinese-made electric vehicles instead of tariffs imposed by the EU last year, Reuters reported citing a European Commission spokesperson.
EU trade commissioner Maros Sefcovic spoke with Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao in the last 24 hours and both sides agreed to begin negotiations immediately, China’s Commerce Ministry said.
Sefcovic has previously said any agreed minimum prices must match the effectiveness and enforceability of the existing EU tariffs. The EU has only applied such pricing arrangements to uniform goods in the past, not to complex products like vehicles, Reuters noted.
The Commission has also stated that one set minimum price would not sufficiently address the harm caused by subsidies.
The context: The EU raised tariffs on Chinese-built EVs to as much as 45.3% last October, including 17.0% for BYD, 18.8% for Geely and 35.3% for SAIC, on top of the EU’s 10% import duty.
German auto industry group VDA welcomed the talks and called the duties a “mistake”. The dispute has also affected French cognac exports due to Chinese retaliatory tariffs.
The source: Reuters
