UK weighs response after EU imposes tariffs on China EV imports
THE United Kingdom government said it’s “concerned” about the impact of electric vehicle (EV) imports and considering potential action, after the European Union moved to impose provisional tariffs on EVs imported from China.
Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds is “vigilant” about the issue and speaking to industry about the next steps, Britain’s Department for Business and Trade said after a meeting with EU trade commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis at a G7 ministers’ meeting in Italy on Tuesday (Jul 16).
“Any solution would have to take the UK’s auto sector exports into account and be calibrated for the UK economy,” according to a government statement summarising the talks.
The new UK administration is facing questions over whether it will follow the EU and United States lead in raising duties on EVs imported from China. The US has announced plans to impose a 102.5 per cent levy, though shipments are currently close to zero, and Canada has said it’s weighing tariffs as well.
The EU’s move came after the bloc investigated what it said were unfair subsidies to EV makers in China, and after manufacturers such as state-owned Saic Motor, which makes MG cars, and BYD started to push more aggressively into Europe.
China’s EV makers are grappling with domestic overcapacity for both battery cell and auto production, and Europe is a lucrative export outlet for its manufacturers. Beijing has threatened to retaliate against EU tariffs, but both sides have signalled they are ready to negotiate before the levies come into full force in November.
For the new UK Labour government – which has pledged to restore a deadline to phase out the sale of new combustion-engine cars as at 2030 – the challenge is to strike a balance between protecting a local industry that made more than a million cars last year and giving consumers access to competitively priced EVs.
For MG, the UK is the most important European market. Last year, the electric MG4 hatchback was the UK’s second best selling EV after Tesla’s Model Y. BLOOMBERG
Share with us your feedback on BT's products and services
