Report suggests UK will not immediately follow EU lead on tough new import tariffs for China BEVs
According to a report in the Financial Times (FT), new UK trade secretary Jonathon Reynolds has indicated the UK government is not immediately planning to follow the EU lead in investigating China auto industry subsidies or imposing new tariffs.
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The FT report said that Reynolds (attending a G7 meeting of trade ministers in Italy) said he had discussed with European colleagues the EU decision to impose tariffs on Chinese EVs as a way of countering what the bloc sees as unfair state subsidies.
However, the new government minister indicated that, while he was concerned (UK must remain ‘vigilant’), he was not planning imminently to launch a formal investigation into Chinese EV imports.
“I am not ruling anything out but, if you have a very much export-orientated industry, the decision you take [has to be] the right one for that sector,” Reynolds reportedly said.
The FT report also said that UK government insiders noted that the British car sector has not formally asked the Trade Remedies Authority to launch an investigation into Chinese EV imports, a move required for the UK to launch a probe.
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By GlobalDataBrussels announced in June that it would increase tariffs on Chinese-made EVs by up to 38 per cent after an anti-subsidy investigation.
