EV maker Nio applauded on Tuesday the “steady progress toward consensus” between the EU and Beijing, a day after the European Commission outlined conditions for Chinese automakers to replace tariffs with minimum price commitments.
Initially planned to debut in Europe, Nio decided to launch its second sub-brand, Firefly, first in China due to the extra duties imposed by the European Commission on imported EVs.
“We are pleased to see China and the EU making steady progress toward consensus on the basis of mutual respect,” the Shanghai-based company said in a statement to Reuters on Tuesday.
The comments came a day after Brussels published guidance for Chinese EV manufacturers seeking alternatives to countervailing duties through price undertaking offers.
A lower tariff — or even the removal — would allow the Shanghai-based company to secure higher margins while being able to lower prices of its vehicles across Europe.
The EV maker plans to start considering local production in Europe once it delivers about 6,000 units per month. Registrations in 2025 remained below 1,500 vehicles.
Over the last few months, Nio has been entering several new European markets including Greece, Hungary, Austria, Portugal, and Belgium.
China and the European Union said Monday they have agreed on steps toward resolving their dispute over the bloc’s tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles.
Tariff Background
The EU imposed countervailing duties of 7.8% to 35.3% on Chinese battery electric vehicle imports in October 2024 for a five-year period, following an anti-subsidy investigation that strained relations between Beijing and Brussels.
Nio faces a 20.7% duty on top of the bloc’s standard 10% import tariff, bringing total levies to 30.7%.
The Commission’s guidance document outlines requirements for minimum import prices and other conditions that could allow Chinese manufacturers to reduce or replace the tariffs.
European Sales Decline
The tariff relief comes as Nio‘s European sales dropped in 2025.
The company’s European registrations fell 31% year over year in 2025 across Norway, the Netherlands, Germany, Sweden, and Denmark — the five markets it entered between 2021 and 2022.
Nio sold 1,129 vehicles across those markets last year, approximately 500 units below the 1,637 registered in 2024.
Including newer markets, the Nio Group sold 1,321 vehicles across seven of its ten European countries, still 300 units below the prior year despite geographic expansion and the launch of the cheaper sub-brand Firefly in select markets.
The figures exclude registration data from Hungary, Austria, and Greece, which had not published December numbers as of Tuesday.
Austria is expected to report on January 14. In Greece, Nio had registered 12 vehicles through November.
Expansion Efforts
Nio entered Europe via Norway in 2021 and expanded to the Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, and Sweden the following year.
Following an underwhelming debut in Denmark, the brand is relaunching in the Scandinavian market with a dealership model featuring both its premium Nio brand and the more affordable Firefly sub-brand.
Throughout 2025, Nio faced challenges selling its 2023 and 2024 model-year vehicles, offering various incentives on the ET5 sedan, ET5 Touring wagon, EL6 SUV, and EL8 SUV.
Firefly Launch
Nio introduced its Firefly brand to Europe in mid-August, launching in Norway and the Netherlands after debuting in China last April.
The compact EV starts at €29,900 in the Netherlands and 279,000 Norwegian kroner ($27,300) in Norway — nearly half the price of the entry-level Nio ET5, which ranges from €50,000 to €60,000 depending on battery configuration.
Approximately 130 Firefly vehicles were registered across Europe through year-end.
