MOSCOW, August 5 The European Union may make a decision on introducing duties on imports of electric cars from China in November, the Financial Times writes, citing EU Trade Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis.
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"EU member states are likely to back the introduction of proposed tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles in November," the publication says.
According to Dombrovskis, the EU is aware of the need to protect its car industry, as China's share of the electric car market is growing very quickly, and this is a problem that needs to be addressed. At the same time, China is the EU's second-largest trading partner, and the bloc is interested in cooperating with it, but bilateral trade relations remain unbalanced, the European Commissioner added.
Since July 4, the EU has introduced preliminary import duties on Chinese electric vehicles. This means that suppliers will provide bank guarantees rather than actually paying the fee. As explained by the European Commission, this measure is intended to correct the unfair situation that has developed between European and Chinese automakers due to state subsidies in China.
The actual collection of duties will begin if a final decision is made, but the EC noted that the parties can still reach an agreement and resolve the problem.
The amount of duties will differ for different manufacturers. For BYD, it will be 17.4 percent; Geely — 19.9 percent; SAIC — 37.6 percent. Those who cooperated during the investigation will be subject to a duty of 20.8 percent, while those who refused to cooperate with the EC will be subject to a duty of 37.6 percent.