There are only a few weeks left before the Commission imposes its countervailing duties on Chinese electric vehicles (see EUROPE 13480/11), but discussions are continuing between the EU and China to try to find an alternative solution. On Thursday 19 September, European Commissioner for Trade, Valdis Dombrovskis, will receive Chinese Trade Minister Wang Wentao in Brussels.
The European Commission continues to assert that it is open to a negotiated solution, “but it must fully comply with WTO rules and fully remedy the injurious effects of subsidies identified”, it insists.
Several Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers have recently submitted price undertakings as an alternative to countervailing duties. This corresponds to a commitment by these companies to export their products to the EU at minimum import prices.
The Commission reviewed these submissions and concluded that they did not remove the injurious effect of the Chinese subsidies. The offers made by the manufacturers were therefore rejected.
In late August, China sent a double message to the EU by concluding that imports of European spirits were causing dumping in China, but by not yet imposing provisional tariffs on these European products (see EUROPE 13471/6).
The Commission considered that the investigation into European spirits was unjustified, and asserted that it would defend the interests of its producers. (Original version in French by Léa Marchal)