By D. Maan, Jadetimes News
Chinese Car Firms Urge Retaliatory Tariffs on EU Vehicles
Chinese car companies have urged Beijing to impose import taxes of up to 25% on European Union rivals if the EU proceeds with tariffs on vehicles from China, as reported by the country's state media. This demand was made during a closed door meeting organized by China's Ministry of Commerce, attended by representatives of both Chinese and European car firms.
The proposed measures would specifically target EU cars with large petrol driven engines. This call for action follows the EU's recent threat to impose tariffs of up to 38% on Chinese electric vehicle (EV) makers starting from 4 July.
According to a social media account linked to state broadcaster CCTV, the meeting in Beijing included four Chinese and six European car companies. Volkswagen confirmed its attendance but declined to comment on the discussions. Other European companies reportedly present, such as BMW and Porsche, did not immediately respond to the BBC's requests for comment.
The report stated, "China's car companies called on the government to adopt firm countermeasures against the EU." It was suggested that within World Trade Organization rules, a higher provisional tariff be imposed on large displacement petrol vehicles imported from Europe.
This stance echoes an article from the state run Global Times, which recommended 25% tariffs on cars with petrol engines larger than 2.5 liters. Bill Russo of the advisory firm Automobility noted that targeting "luxury or ultra luxury" vehicles with additional taxes is unlikely to significantly impact sales volumes.
Why the EU Might Soon Raise Prices on Chinese Electric Cars?
Last week, the European Commission (EC), the governing body of the EU, announced that it had preliminarily decided to impose tariffs on Chinese EV manufacturers if ongoing discussions with Chinese authorities do not yield a satisfactory resolution. Companies that cooperated in the investigation, initiated in October, may face an average tariff of 21%, while non cooperating firms could see tariffs as high as 38.1%. These tariffs would be in addition to the existing 10% tariff already imposed on all electric cars manufactured in China.
The EU's actions follow a significant move by the US, which recently raised its tariff on Chinese electric cars from 25% to 100%. China has criticized these decisions as protectionist and has responded with its own retaliatory measures. This includes launching investigations into imports of European pork products and chemicals from the EU and US in recent weeks.