The European Union (EU) plans to tax imports of Chinese electric vehicles up to 36% for five years, unless Beijing offers an alternative solution, the European Commission announced yesterday.
These tariffs, which are added to the 10% rates already applied to vehicles manufactured in China, will come into force by the end of October and will replace the temporary rates that were decided in July, set at 38%, the Commission said in a statement.
The Commission declared itself “open” to dialogue and to any alternative solution to avoid these rates that some Member States criticized, such as Germany and Sweden.
The Chinese Ministry of Commerce said it “strongly opposes” these measures and urged the Commission to seek “appropriate solutions and concrete measures to avoid an escalation of trade frictions.”
The European Commission also announced that it will not collect the provisional taxes that had come into force on July 5. The money from these will remain in a blocked account and will then be returned.
These new taxes will be definitively adopted before November unless a qualified majority of members (15 of the 27 EU countries representing 65% of the bloc’s population) oppose them.
They concern most Chinese manufacturers. Brussels will impose additional tariffs of 17% on BYD, instead of 17.4% as provided for in the provisional rate; 19.3% on Geely (compared to 19.9%) and 36.3% on SAIC (compared to 37.6%).
UE planea arancel de 36% a coches eléctricos (eleconomista.com.mx)