EU tariffs on Chinese EVs harm export-dependent economies: business chamber leader

China

EU tariffs on Chinese EVs harm export-dependent economies: business chamber leader

2024-11-14 16:14 Last Updated At：11-15 00:47

The additional tariffs the European Union imposed on the electric vehicles (EVs) imported from China are harmful to export-dependent economies like China and Germany which need free markets, said a German business chamber leader.

Maximilian Butek, executive director of the German Chamber of Commerce in China - East China, made the statement in an interview with China Global Television Network (CGTN) on the sidelines of the AHK Greater China Xceleration Days 2024, which is taking place in Beijing from Nov 13 to 15.

"The tariffs are against carmakers who produce in China and deliver to Germany. And this also hits companies like Tesla or BMW. So, we positioned ourselves on behalf of our companies against tariffs because our economy is quite similar to the Chinese economy. We are highly export-dependent. So, we need free markets, and having implemented tariffs will not promote the idea of free markets. We need an open discussion because if the economy is continuing to slow down, we will not have a good winner out of that," he said.

Last month the European Commission announced the imposition of anti-subsidy tariffs on Chinese EVs. Starting Oct. 31, these tariffs will remain in place for five years with varying rates: 17 percent for BYD, 18.8 percent for Geely, and 35.3 percent for SAIC, among China's leading automakers. Additional firms that cooperated in the investigation will be subject to a 20.7-percent duty, while non-cooperative companies will incur the maximum 35.3-percent rate.

Butek also noted that German companies are committed to exploring the overseas market like China and the United States by creating jobs, bringing technologies and boosting innovation, thus urging the two economies not to decouple in case of taking a toll on consumers of both sides.

"Chinese companies have future advantages. German companies have future advantages. We German companies, we really love to be in China, to be very committed to our employees here. And we have more than one million employees in China to continue bringing technology, knowledge, innovation into China. And we also like to do that in the States. So, I believe that the tensions between U.S. and China, those two powers have to resolve that. And we, in the ideal world, try to work in both systems. And we just can urge both sides: don't decouple, because if you decouple, it's the consumers in China and in the U.S. will pay for it," he said.

As the flagship business event organized by AHK Greater China, the AHK Xceleration Days attract thousands of business leaders, executives, and representatives of international organizations, aiming to promote bilateral economic and trade exchanges and cooperation between China and Germany and to accelerate their business development in China.

China's PPI up 2.8 pct in April

China's producer price index (PPI), which measures costs for goods at the factory gate, went up 2.8 percent year on year in April, the National Bureau of Statistics said Monday.

On a month-on-month basis, the PPI rose 1.7 percent in April, up from 1 percent in March.

NBS statistician Dong Lijuan attributed the rise in the PPI to three main factors: rising prices in domestic petroleum-related sectors driven by international price movements, increased demand in certain domestic industries, and the continued improvement in market competition order, which led to price increases or smaller declines in relevant sectors.

In the year-on-year breakdown, production materials prices rose 3.8 percent, contributing about 2.98 percentage points to the overall PPI increase. Among them, the mining industry surged 10.6 percent, raw materials rose 7.1 percent, and processing industries were up 1.5 percent.

Consumer goods prices fell 1.0 percent, trimming the overall PPI by 0.23 percentage points. To be specific, food prices declined 1.9 percent, clothing and daily-use goods each fell 1.1 percent, and durable consumer goods dropped 0.3 percent.

In the industrial producer purchase prices, nonferrous metal materials and wires jumped 21.3 percent, chemical raw materials rose 5.9 percent, fuel and power increased 4.4 percent, and textile raw materials were up 1.0 percent. By contrast, building materials and non-metallic products fell 5.1 percent, agricultural and sideline products dropped 2.1 percent, and ferrous metal materials declined 0.9 percent.

On a monthly basis, production materials prices increased 2.1 percent in April, contributing 1.68 percentage points to the overall PPI rise. Mining rose 5.7 percent, raw materials advanced 4.9 percent, and processing industries were up 0.4 percent.

Consumer goods prices edged down 0.1 percent. Food fell 0.4 percent and clothing dipped 0.1 percent, while daily-use goods and durable consumer goods each rose 0.1 percent.

With regard to purchasing prices of industrial producers, chemical raw materials jumped 7.3 percent, fuel and power rose 6.3 percent, textile raw materials increased 1.3 percent, ferrous metals gained 0.6 percent, and agricultural products added 0.3 percent. Building materials and non-metallic products fell 1.0 percent, while nonferrous metals and wires edged down 0.1 percent.

In the first four months of 2026, the PPI rose 0.2 percent from the same period last year, and the purchasing prices of industrial producers increased 0.5 percent.