China's commerce minister to visit EU to discuss tariffs on EVs
China's Commerce Minister Wang Wentao will visit Europe this month to discuss the European Union's tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, as member states openly express doubts about the policy.
Beijing has railed against last month's announcement that five-year import duties of up to 36 percent would be levied on EVs imported from China.
The tariffs were instigated by the European Commission -- which oversees the bloc's trade policy -- on the grounds of unfair competition, but individual member states have expressed reservations.
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Wang's trip to Europe will include talks on September 19 with the bloc's trade chief, Valdis Dombrovskis, a commerce ministry spokeswoman said Thursday.
They will "discuss the EU's anti-subsidy case against Chinese electric vehicles," she said at a regular news conference.
The announcement comes after Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said Wednesday the EU should "reconsider" the tariff plan, calling for a "compromise" between the economic powerhouses.
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"As I said before, we don't need another war, in this case a trade war," Sanchez said at a press conference wrapping up a visit to China.
Brussels has launched a raft of probes targeting Chinese subsidies for solar panels, wind turbines and trains.
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Beijing in turn has launched investigations into European brandy, some dairy and pork products imported into China.
Spain is the European Union's largest exporter of pork products to China.
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