EU set to award China 'holy grail' with tariff-rules revamp

Brussels

EUROPEAN industries from steel to solar are bracing for a new set of tariff rules that may make it harder to fend off low-cost imports from China and other foreign countries.

European Union governments are due on Monday to rubber-stamp the biggest revamp of the bloc's method for calculating duties aimed at countering below-cost - or "dumped" - imports. The move is a response to longstanding Chinese government demands for more favourable treatment while stopping short of saying those shipments are fairly priced.