面对大量涌入欧洲市场的廉价中国汽车电动车带来的挑战，欧洲汽车制造商获得了一线生机——欧盟在10月4日表决决定对进口自中国的电动汽车征收高达45%的关税，以回应中国对本国汽车产业施予的补贴行为。这一决策预计将对包括大众、宝马和梅赛德斯-奔驰在内的多家西方制造商构成影响，也可能波及向欧洲出口车辆的中国企业。
这一举措旨在保护欧盟本地汽车品牌免受竞争威胁，但同时也可能激化与中国的贸易争端，损害企业在华业务。6月时，欧盟委员会曾提高关税至当前10%的基础上，并对个别中国品牌设置了初步征税额度。尽管德国等重要汽车产业国家对此表示担忧，最终的征税决定在10月4日得到欧盟成员国一致同意，于11月生效。
针对中国采取强硬措施被视为对不公平贸易和市场扭曲行为的回应，中国政府已通过大规模补贴出口汽车、给予国内企业关键领域中的优惠，改变了长期繁荣的中国汽车市场格局。去年，中国与欧洲之间的双边贸易额达到了7390亿欧元，欧盟还启动了涉及医用设备采购及中国企业参与欧洲能源项目的其他调查。
对此局面，欧盟内的汽车制造商们纷纷表达对布鲁塞尔政策的关注和担忧。Stellantis首席执行官强调，欧盟应助力本土品牌应对危机，但也指出了关税带来的通胀风险。而那些依赖中国市场的企业，如大众、保时捷、宝马和梅赛德斯奔驰，将面临更大的经济损失风险。
值得注意的是，针对来自欧洲的高排量汽车征收高达25%的报复性关税措施已经被中国政府提出，其重点影响对象为上述德国品牌车企。此外，中国还暗示可能采取对等报复措施，涉及航空、农业、乳制品和葡萄酒等行业，并已启动对欧洲酒精类饮料出口的调查。
为了避免进一步恶化贸易关系，双方正在寻求通过对话与协商来解决问题。欧盟建议找到替代方案，可能包括一个能够管控出口价格与数量的机制，以取代关税措施。此建议需符合世界贸易组织规则，并解决补贴这一根本问题。
综上所述，面对全球汽车业格局的重大调整，中国与欧洲间的贸易摩擦正成为关注焦点，两国间寻求和平谈判解决方案的重要性日益凸显。
新闻来源：www.bloomberg.com
原文地址：Europe Readies Tariffs on Flood of Cheap Chinese EVs
新闻日期：2024-10-04
原文摘要：
Help is on the way for European carmakers struggling to deal with an influx of cheap Chinese electric vehicles. The European Union voted on Oct. 4 to impose tariffs as high as 45% on EVs imported from China after an investigation into that Beijing doles out to its car industry. The duties are expected to hurt companies including , and , but also risk affecting Western manufacturers that ship cars made at their Chinese factories to Europe — for example . While the levies Europe’s domestic brands to defend their home turf, they’re likely to from Beijing, harming their business in China. The European Commission carmakers in June that it would raise duties from the current level of 10%, and also set provisional levies for individual Chinese car brands. The final duties were signed off by member states on Oct. 4, despite misgivings among some major automaking nations including Germany. They were due to go into effect by November. Brussels says it is responding more assertively to what it sees as unfair trade and market-distorting practices, which have seen Beijing subsidize exports and aggressively favor domestic firms in key sectors. EU countries did €739 billion ($815 billion) in trade with China last year, and the bloc has opened other investigations in areas ranging from China’s procurement of medical devices to bids by Chinese firms for energy projects in the EU. The bloc is keen to prevent a replay of what happened to Europe’s solar industry a decade ago, when local manufacturers failed to keep up with state-backed Chinese rivals and were priced out of their own market. EU nations would struggle to match the scale of subsidies and tax breaks for EVs and other green technologies handed out by China. Europe isn’t alone in imposing tariffs on imports of goods produced using those incentives while local manufacturers try to adapt. The US in May unveiled on a range of Chinese imports, including EVs. China produces more electric cars than anywhere else and makes most of the world’s EV batteries — the most expensive part of an electric car and the biggest determinant of its performance. Its automakers are now expanding overseas to sidestep a price war and a slowing economy at home. Selling to customers in Berlin or Paris, where they can command higher prices, will require big initial investments but may eventually produce good returns. With the EU planning to gradually phase out combustion engines, the market is potentially huge. UBS AG analysts in a September 2023 research note that Western automakers were set to lose a fifth of their market share because of the rise of more affordable Chinese EVs. But like Europe’s homegrown manufacturers, the Chinese brands have to contend with slowing sales growth for EVs in Europe, where governments in several countries havae pulled subsidies and inflation sapped consumer spending.For many years, China’s booming auto market was a money spinner for the world’s top carmakers. The rise of EVs is changing the dynamic, with BYD having dethroned VW as the top-selling auto brand in China. Some carmakers are shrinking their exposure, with shuttering its only Jeep factory in the country. Others are overhauling their products and striking partnerships with local players — VW, for example, is introducing in China and has with Xpeng — to defend sales or get access to technology. Closer to home, manufacturers are racing to offer more affordable EVs to defend against the cheap Chinese competition, while also tweaking their electrifcation strategies to account for : The European Commission in March said it had found “” that the imports of new EVs from China received subsidies including direct transfer of funds, tax breaks, or public provision of good or services below market prices.In China, yes, but . Renault has for several years marketed the Dacia Spring as Europe’s most affordable electric car, with a base price of €16,900. However, this is a poor indicator of European manufacturing competitiveness as the car is built in China’s Hubei province. It’s still far cheaper to make a car in China than it is in Europe, given the country’s low cost of land, energy and labor, and the vast economies of scale derived from being a first mover in mass-production of EVs. That’s reflected in the contrast in EV sticker prices between China and Europe. In Germany, SAIC’s MG4 costs €34,990. In China, it’s (€14,184).Europe’s carmakers on how Brussels is dealing with China. While Stellantis Chief Executive Officer has said the EU should come to the aid of homegrown manufacturers, he’s also recently tariffs a “big trap” that will drive inflation. The companies that rely heavily on sales in China — mainly Volkswagen, Porsche, BMW and Mercedes — have much more to lose if trade relations continue to deteriorate. Mercedes CEO in June said Europe should the urge to take protectionist measures, repeating a mantra he’s been championing ever since the EU opened its probe. Slapping tariffs on Chinese EVs will delay the transition to a cleaner economy, with an escalating trade conflict poised to hurt “,” former Volkswagen CEO — now chairman of chipmaker Infineon Technologies AG — said during a BloombergNEF conference in Munich that same month. China’s Ministry of Commerce responded swiftly to the EU’s tariff move in June, urging the bloc to and to handle economic and trade frictions through dialogue and consultation. Beijing has it’s ready to unleash retaliatory tariffs as high as 25% on imports of cars made in the EU with large engines — which would affect Mercedes-Benz, Porsche and BMW the most. Beijing has also hinted at possible tit-for-tat levies on European aviation, agricultural and dairy goods and wine, and has begun an investigation into European exports of brandy. It could also restrict exports of goods that are for EV production, such as rare earths or battery metals like lithium. The EU mines only a small fraction of the lithium it consumes, and relies on China to process it. Another retaliatory tool China has used in the past is to restrict tourism to inflict economic punishment. A negotiated solution is still a possibility. Brussels and Beijing have been holding talks to explore whether an alternative can be found. One avenue they are exploring is a potential mechanism to control prices and volumes of exports in place of the duties. The EU has said any arrangement needs to comply with World Trade Organization rules and address the underlying issue of subsidies.
