China and EU discuss trade in response to US’ punitive tariffs

BEIJING - China and the European Union have exchanged views on strengthening their economic and trade cooperation in response to US tariffs, the Chinese Commerce Ministry said on April 10.

In a video call on April 8, China’s Commerce Minister Wang Wentao discussed with European trade and economic security commissioner Maros Sefcovic the restart of talks on trade relief and to immediately carry out negotiations on electric vehicle (EV) price commitments, the Chinese ministry statement said.

The conversation came shortly before US President Donald Trump’s additional tariffs on China started taking effect.

Mr Trump on April 9 said he would

temporarily lower the hefty duties

he had just imposed on dozens of countries, in a stunning reversal. He, however, ramped up pressure on China, threatening to raise tariffs on the world’s second-largest economy to 125 per cent.

China is ready to deepen trade, investment and industrial cooperation with the EU, Mr Wang told Mr Sefcovic.

Mr Wang urged China and the EU to jointly safeguard the rules-based multilateral trading system and adhere to trade liberalisation and facilitation, “which will inject more stability and certainty into the world economy and global trade”, the ministry statement said.

China and the EU also discussed creating a more favourable business environment for enterprises and trade transfer issues.

They will continue to strengthen communication under the World Trade Organisation (WTO) framework and jointly promote WTO reform, the ministry statement said.

The EU had imposed additional tariffs of up to 35.3 per cent on China-made EVs at the end of October 2024 after an anti-subsidy investigation, on top of the bloc’s standard 10 per cent car import tariffs.

The Commerce Ministry said last week that the two sides have agreed to restart negotiations on minimum price commitments on Chinese EVs but did not specify when that would resume. REUTERS