The Chinese government has filed a complaint with the World Trade Organisation (WTO) over the European Union’s (EU) imposition last month of additional import tariffs on battery electric vehicles (BEVs) imported from China.
The commerce ministry said it made recourse to the WTO’s dispute settlement mechanism to contest the legality of the EU’s decision to hike tariffs to up to 48%, which it said was aimed at countering the substantial Chinese state subsidies provided to the country’s battery electric vehicle (BEV) manufacturers.
A ministry spokesman said in a statement: “The EU's decision lacks factual and legal basis and violates WTO rules. It also undermines global cooperation in combating climate change."
He urged the EU to “rectify its erroneous actions promptly in order to maintain stable China-EU economic and trade cooperation”.
The EU said the tariffs would remain in place at least until November when a final ruling would be made. If the decision was upheld, the duties would remain for at least five years.
Last month China asked the WTO to set up an expert panel to help settle a similar dispute with the US after its largest trading partner announced in March a 100% import tariff on China made vehicles as part of the US Inflation Reduction Act.
