EU launches probes into Chinese subsidies for electric vehicles

The European Union has opened a probe into China’s subsidies for electric vehicle makers, amid concerns the payments are harming European companies.

The European Union has opened a probe into China’s subsidies for electric vehicle makers, amid concerns the payments are harming European companies.

“Global markets are now flooded with cheaper Chinese electric cars, and their price is kept artificially low by huge state subsidies. This is distorting our market,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told EU lawmakers on Sept 14 (Wednesday).

“As we do not accept this distortion from the inside in our market, we do not accept this from the outside,” von der Leyen said. “So, I can announce today that the commission is launching an anti-subsidy investigation into electric vehicles coming from China.”

The probe is the highest-profile case against China since an EU probe into Chinese solar panels narrowly avoided a trade war a decade ago.