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China and EU hurtling towards trade war, business chief fears
- Frustration said to be mounting on continent and evident in European Commission investigations over Chinese subsidies, such as for electric vehicles
- EU chamber chief fears ‘retaliation’ and that events take on a life of their own leading to a ‘self-reinforcing doom loop’
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Finbarr Berminghamin Brussels
Europe’s top business group in China fears Brussels and Beijing are on the brink of a trade war, as economic tensions soar to unprecedented levels.
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In recent months, the European Commission has launched an increasingly dramatic series of investigations, frustrated by China’s apparent unwillingness to expand market access for European firms or tone down its use of industrial subsidies.
The most prominent probe, relating to subsidies in China’s electric-vehicle industry, will conclude in early June. Provisional duties are expected to be slapped on the imported cars in July.
“Based on historical precedence, I fear that there will be retaliation,” said Jens Eskelund, president of the EU Chamber of Commerce in China, in an interview in Brussels on Thursday.
Can China’s EV makers overtake their rivals?
Trade wars occur when one party retaliates against another’s policies by either raising import tariffs or restricting market access for its products.
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