China’s Ministry of Commerce confirmed on Thursday that several companies are expected to sign pricing agreements with the European Union, hoping the Western bloc will lift the heavy tariffs on imported EVs.
The comments follow the EU’s recent approval to lift countervailing duties on the Cupra Tavascan SUV, produced in China by Volkswagen (Anhui), granted that the model adheres to a minimum price requirement and an import quota.
The fully electric Tavascan had been subject to a 20.7% tariff, on top of an existing 10% duty, since the EU imposed tariffs on Chinese fully electric vehicles in late 2024.
Ministry spokesperson He Yadong noted that both China and EU support Chinese EV makers in making effective use of the undertaking offers, which can be seen by the European side’s guidance document issued last month.
The document was formulated during the bilateral talks and pledged to carry out assessments in a non-discriminatory, objective, and fair manner, according to the Ministry, cited by local media.
According to He Yadong, China will maintain dialogue with the EU to foster an “open and stable” market environment for both auto industries, which are “deeply integrated and mutually beneficial.”
He expressed hope that the European side would “earnestly” implement the consensus, accepting undertaking offers from Chinese companies — other than Volkswagen China, a subsidiary of the German legacy automaker.
On Wednesday, the China Chamber of Commerce to the EU (CCCEU) commented that several automakers are still “assessing and considering whether to submit their own price undertaking proposals individually to the EU, based on their respective business situations.”
The institution urged the EU to “adhere to the principles of fairness, transparency, and non-discrimination in the assessment and implementation of price undertakings, treating Chinese enterprises on an equal footing.”
Criticism
The EU has kept confidential the agreed quota and minimum price set for the model, however, despite a request for details from the China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Machinery and Electronic Products (CCCME), Reuters reported.
Official documents show that the company began reviewing the VW subsidiary’s undertaking offer in early December — a month before it issued a guidance document, available to Chinese EV manufacturers, on these price undertaking offers.
Last month, upon welcoming EU’s “renewed commitment to restarting price undertaking negotiations,” Beijing has urged Brussels not to negotiate independently with individual manufacturers, preferring a unified approach.
Commission Guidance
In January, the European Commission had issued a guidance document on the submission of price undertaking offers for Chinese automakers, in the context of the tariffs imposed over a year ago.
Automakers must commit to minimum import prices, demonstrate simple sales channel structures, and may include pledges for EU investments to strengthen their applications.
The Commission said undertakings may be submitted individually by a single company or jointly by several manufacturers, though joint submissions “must take into account each individual company’s specifics.”
Trade Scenario
The extra tariffs on imported Chinese EVs have rates varying by automaker and were imposed following an investigation that found Chinese subsidies gave them an unfair advantage over other manufacturers.
Individual rates range from 7.8% for Tesla‘s Shanghai-produced vehicles to 35.3% for non-cooperating manufacturers, on top of the bloc’s standard 10% vehicle import tariff.
Combined with the bloc’s standard 10% vehicle import tariff, Chinese EV makers face levies of up to 45.3%.
In April, as Trump’s new tariffs took place, EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič and China’s Commerce Minister Wang Wentao agreed to investigate the possibility of setting minimum prices for the imported EVs as an alternative to tariffs.
