China, EU trade officials hold last-ditch talks over EV tariffs

China’s lead trade official is in Europe on a last-ditch mission to avert looming tariffs on electric cars ahead of a deadline that’s only days away.

Commerce Minister Wang Wentao is meeting his European Union counterpart Valdis Dombrovskis on Thursday, following on from talks with carmakers in Brussels. The EU was planning to vote Sept. 25 on whether to impose the tariffs, though that date could slip slightly.

Wang is on a whirlwind tour of Europe, trying to convince enough nations to vote against the tariffs by visiting Germany, Italy, and now Belgium, where the EU is headquartered. The EU has proposed imposing tariffs on China-made EVs of up to nearly 50 per cent.

The vote later this month would pave the way for the duties to kick in from November for five years unless a qualified majority — 15 member states representing 65 per cent of the the bloc’s population — opposes the move. The EU has repeatedly said that any solution needs to be in line with World Trade Organization rules and address the impact of China’s subsidies.

At stake for the EU are the tens of thousands of jobs and economic output from the auto and supplier industry that’s facing a profound impact from electrification. Tariffs may give European carmakers some breathing space from Chinese competitors ramping up a global expansion.

And for China, Europe is one of the most lucrative markets for its EV exports. Relatively unencumbered access will help Chinese manufacturers lift margins that have been eroded by a fierce competition at home. Around the talks, China is offering both a carrot of increased investment into car plants — in countries like Spain and Hungary — as well as wielding the stick of threatening tariffs on dairy, brandy and other products.

During his talks in Italy, Wang said the European Commission had shown no political will to resolve the dispute, according to a report from Chinese media Caixin. Italy supports the imposition of tariffs, according to its foreign minister, Antonio Tajani.

However, Spain and Germany have in recent weeks raised the stakes by expressing opposition to the tariffs. Earlier this month the Spanish leader said the EU should re-examine its plan to impose additional levies, underlining simmering EU divisions over the trade measure.

Watch: Tata Curvv review: Can it curve a niche for itself?

The German government’s spokesman, Steffen Hebestreit then said that Chancellor Olaf Scholz had already made clear his skeptical views on the issue and welcomed the comments from Pedro Sanchez, Spain’s prime minister.

In a statement published after a meeting with Wang in Berlin this week, German Economy Minister Robert Habeck urged the EU and China to find a political solution in a dispute over Chinese-made electric vehicles and said a trade conflict should be avoided “at all costs."

Check out Upcoming EV Cars in India, Upcoming EV Bikes in India.