As you know, the European Union will impose temporarily increased tariffs on Chinese-made electric cars starting next month, and the scale of these tariffs in their current form offers many car manufacturers a different approach. Although Chinese officials expressed disagreement with the EU’s accusations against them, they confirmed that they were ready to hold further consultations with their European counterparts on this situation.

We would like to remind you that the final tariffs on the import of electric cars from China to the EU, which will be valid for the next five years, must be approved by the beginning of November and must be approved by the EU authorities by then. The bloc and the People’s Republic of China will be able to exchange necessary information. According to CnEVPost, Minister of Trade of the People’s Republic of China Wang Wentao agreed on a video conference with European Commission Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis, who deals with the customs policy of the region. According to representatives of the Chinese ministry, the parties agreed to start consultations if the EU increases customs duties on Chinese electric vehicles.

Before that, it was possible to import Chinese electric cars into the EU at a rate of 10 percent, but as of July 4, an additional rate ranging from 17.4 to 38.1 percent will be added. European Union officials distributed tariff rates among Chinese manufacturers based on their degree of adherence to this decision and their willingness to cooperate with the investigation. BYD, China’s largest electric car manufacturer, achieved a premium between 17.4 percent and 10 percent, while Geely, Nio and Xpeng faced a premium of around 21 percent. However, SAIC and other “stubborn” manufacturers in China charged a maximum surcharge of 38.1%; This will increase the cost of electric cars when imported into the EU by at least one and a half times.

The other day, as noted by Reuters, Premier of the People’s Republic of China Li Qiang (Li Qiang) once again condemned the customs policy of the European Union in his speech at the economic forum in Dalian. According to him, the price advantages of Chinese-made electric cars come from economies of scale, and China generally prioritizes saturating its domestic market with affordable electric cars before exporting them. The costs of Chinese companies in implementing innovations were compensated not by state subsidies, as the Prime Minister stated, but by economies of production scale. This, the official emphasized, is the comparative advantage of the Chinese economy. Based on this year’s results, the country’s authorities predict that GDP will increase by around 5%, as the Chinese economy has shown signs of returning to growth since the beginning of the year.