EU, China hold 'constructive' talks on electric vehicle tariffs but still no agreement

Jan van der Made with RFI

20 September 2024 at 8:59 am·1-min read

EU Trade Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis reported positive progress in discussions with Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao on Thursday. The talks come as China aims to negotiate an agreement with the European Union to prevent the imposition of high tariffs on electric vehicles (EVs) exported to EU countries.

The meeting took place amid increasing divisions within Europe over proposed tariffs, with Spain calling on the EU last week to "rethink" plans for duties of up to 36 percent on Chinese electric vehicles, aligning with Germany in its opposition.

"Constructive meeting with Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao. Both sides agreed to intensify efforts to find an effective, enforceable and WTO (World Trade Organization) compatible solution," Dombrovskis said on X.

Wang also spoke to businesses in the EV sector on Wednesday in Brussels after which he said in a statement that China "[would] certainly persevere until the final moments of the consultations".

According to the statement by the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, the two sides engaged in "comprehensive, in-depth and constructive consultations on the EU's anti-subsidy case for electric vehicles against China.

The statement added that both sides "expressed their political will to resolve their differences through consultations, agreed to continue to push forward the negotiations on the price commitment agreement."

Are EU tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles a sign of weakness?

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