EU considers imposing taxes against Chinese EV companies

The European Commission is considering imposing punitive rates to protect EU automakers against cheaper Chinese EV imports.

“Global markets are now flooded with cheaper electric cars,” said European Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen, during her annual speech to the EU parliament.

“Their price is kept artificially low by huge state subsidies.”

The current standard EU rate for cars is 10%. The Commission will decide during the next 13 months, whether to impose rates above that. A such decision could risk sparking a trade war with China.

The investigation also includes non-Chinese brands made in China, like Tesla, Renault and BMW.

Chinese automakers have for now a fairly small market share in Europe. Still, that could easily change as Chinese EV makers are pushing to expand overseas.

China’s auto exports grew 31% in August, according to China Passenger Car Association data. China’s share of EV’s sold in the EU, which on average are around 20% cheaper than EU-made models, has increased to 8%. The Chinese market share is expected to hit 15% in 2025, according to the European Commission. That projection is backed up by recent announcements.

The Chinese Chamber of Commerce to the EU objected to the investigation, saying that that the bloc should look at Chinese EVs objectively.

Source: techcrunch.com