Alberto Nardelli and Jorge Valero of Bloomberg report that EU nations are signaling support for provisional tariffs on Chinese EVs. They write:
European Union member states signaled support for provisional tariffs on electric vehicles shipped from China in a secret non-binding vote this week that showed the bloc’s appetite for taking on the world’s second-biggest economy over trade concerns.
It isn’t known how each nation voted in the advisory ballot, but it also showed there are still signs of unease. A number of key governments, including Germany, abstained, with some planning to form a firmer position at a later date, according to people familiar with the matter, who spoke on condition of anonymity as the procedure is confidential.
The EU moved ahead earlier this month with plans to impose provisional tariffs on EVs made in China that would raise rates to as high as 48% after an investigation showed that Beijing subsidizes its EV industry to a degree that causes economic harm to the bloc’s carmakers.
It has applied temporary duties on three Chinese manufacturers that were sampled during its anti-subsidy probe. State-owned MG maker SAIC Motor Corp. faces a 37.6% additional tariff on top of the existing 10% rate, while Volvo Car AB parent Geely Automobile Holdings Ltd. and BYD Co. will be hit with added charges of 19.9% and 17.4% respectively. […]
This applies to Volkswagen AG and BMW joint ventures with Chinese carmakers that manufacture VW’s Cupra Tavascan SUVs and BMW’s Mini electric vehicles. The commission has offered to apply an additional 20.8% duty to these cars — the rate applied to the company they’re partnered with and to companies that cooperated — rather than than the 37.6% rate for those who didn’t comply with the probe or the standard interim treatment for newcomers that ask to be assessed.
A spokesperson for BMW said the company is in discussions with the commission regarding a lower tariff, but that no decision has been reached yet. A VW spokesperson declined to comment.
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