EU electric vehicle tariffs severely hinders climate goals: Chinese business group

BRUSSELS, Aug. 9 (Xinhua) -- The China Chamber of Commerce to the European Union (CCCEU) reiterated on Friday that EU imposing high tariffs on imports of battery electric vehicles (BEVs) from China would severely hinder its climate goals, industrial competitiveness, and China-EU cooperation in the automotive industry.

Transition to vehicle electrification is crucial for the EU to achieve its climate goals, the chamber said in a statement, noting that imposing high tariffs on Chinese BEVs will only raise their price, diminish consumer demand, and consequently slow down EU's pace of green transition and climate neutrality.

The history of the global auto industry has shown repeatedly that protectionism can only bring high cost of protection and make companies gradually losing competitiveness under the umbrella of tariffs, the chamber said.

The CCCEU again called for a mutually acceptable solution at an early date, to "shore up confidence and stabilize expectations in trade and investment cooperation between Chinese and EU enterprises, and jointly drive the transition to vehicle electrification and achieve climate neutrality targets."