The European Commission has announced that the deadline for Chinese manufacturers to establish a minimum price on Chinese electric vehicles (EVs) has passed. This marks a significant development in negotiations as the European Union prepares to vote on imposing tariffs on Chinese EVs next month.
Wang Wentao, China’s commerce minister, is currently in Europe to engage in discussions with the European Commission ahead of the vote. The potential tariffs could be as high as 36.3 percent on Chinese EVs. Wang also plans to meet with EU trade chief Valdis Dombrovskis.
A spokesperson from the European Commission stated, “The deadline for submitting such offers was the 24th of August and there is no possibility beyond that deadline to offer new price undertakings under the rules of this type of investigation.” They further added, “The Chinese automakers had ample time before the deadline to make this type of price undertaking. Had they done so earlier, it would have allowed for meaningful engagement on the topic.”
Last week, it was revealed that minimum price offers from Chinese manufacturers had already been reviewed and rejected by the commission.
In October, the European Commission will hold a vote on whether or not to impose tariffs. The current proposal suggests tariffs of 9 percent for Tesla, 17 percent for BYD, 19.3 percent for Geely, and 36.3 percent for state-owned SAIC Group in addition to a standard 10 percent duty applied by the bloc on all imported cars.
The tariff rates were released by the European Commission following an investigation into China’s EV industry which concluded that it had been heavily subsidized by its government leading to overcapacity and artificially low prices. This situation was found to potentially disrupt Europe’s market balance.
If a majority of EU member states support this measure during voting, these tariffs will come into effect at the end of October and typically remain active for five years once implemented.
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani met with Wang in Rome recently and expressed his support for these duties during an interview with local media outlet Corriere della Sera. Italy is one of Europe’s major car manufacturers and has been actively seeking investments from Chinese carmakers Dongfeng and Chery Auto to establish factories within its borders.
During their meeting, Tajani emphasized fair access to China’s market and equal opportunities for Italian companies operating within various sectors including small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs) and agri-food businesses.
Tajani also highlighted other important topics discussed such as collaboration between China and Italy regarding security concerns in key regions like Red Sea navigation freedom and export safety measures while addressing ongoing conflicts like Ukraine’s war situation.
It should be noted that Reuters contributed information used in this report.
