China’s electric vehicle makers scramble for EU tariff deal, with price floor on the table
Chinese carmakers offering to set minimum prices and volume limits, but insiders say proposals are unlikely to convince Brussels
Companies would in return be granted some amnesty from hefty import tariffs due to be slapped on Chinese-made EVs by the commission by October. The EU has complained that cheap, exported Chinese vehicles threaten the future of Europe’s car industry.
The companies would also be willing to put a limit on the volume of EV exports to the European Union should Brussels cut the punitive tariff, according to people familiar with the meetings. Above that volume, imports would face the duties the commission proposed earlier this month of up to 36.3 per cent.
Panels sold at a higher rate or above a certain sales volume were subject to punitive import duties designed to bring the products in line with local market rates.