The Chinese Chamber of Commerce in the European Union has called on Brussels to adopt clear, transparent, and non-discriminatory procedures in evaluating the price commitments proposed by Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers.
This position follows the European Commission’s decision to accept a price commitment concerning the “Tavascan” model, produced in China under the Cupra brand of the Volkswagen Group, which allows it to be exempt from anti-dumping duties as long as it meets a minimum import price and a specified share. The Chamber, in a memo published on its WeChat account, stated that this step sets a precedent that should be uniformly applied to all companies without discrimination based on origin.
The organization emphasized the necessity of adopting a stable and clear mechanism for handling price commitments, based on the principle of equal rules for interpretation and application among all actors.
It clarified that the working group focused on the automotive sector within the Chamber recently held a technical dialogue with European authorities regarding the guiding document governing this mechanism, noting that several Chinese manufacturers are considering, depending on their business strategies and export volumes, the possibility of submitting similar proposals to the European Commission.
The Chamber highlighted that price commitments have become a crucial tool in regulating electric vehicle exports to the European market, warning that any discriminatory approach could exacerbate tensions in a sector that has become strategically significant in economic relations between China and the European Union.
The Chinese Chamber of Commerce reaffirmed its intention to continue acting as a liaison between Chinese companies and European institutions, given the growing importance of the electric vehicle sector within the cooperation agenda between the two sides.
This comes after the Chinese Minister of Commerce announced on January 12 that Beijing and Brussels agreed on the necessity of establishing general guidelines for the price commitments related to battery electric vehicle exports to the European market.
