Chinese Minister of Commerce Heads to Europe for Electric Cars
Four informed sources told Reuters that the Chinese Minister of Commerce will travel to Europe next April to hold discussions regarding the European Commission’s investigation into whether China’s electric car industry has benefited from unfair subsidies.
A French government source and two other people with knowledge of the trip told Reuters that Wang Wentao will visit France. The French Trade Ministry and the European Commission did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The European Commission has launched an investigation to determine whether to impose tariffs on exports to protect European automakers. The investigations are scheduled to end by next November, although the EU executive could impose temporary charges before then.
The Chinese Ministry of Commerce did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Reuters. The European Commission predicted that by 2025, China could capture 15% of Europe’s electric car market due to its lower prices compared to European-made battery-powered cars.
China has disputed the claim that its electric car industry has boomed because of subsidies, calling the EU investigation “protectionist.” Factors including China’s dominance of the battery supply chain, innovation and intense competition in a crowded domestic market have also pushed prices down, analysts say.
Meanwhile, the Chinese automaker BYD officially settled on the throne of electric car sales in the world during the past year, and has become the largest company in the world in terms of selling these cars. This confirms the initial numbers and expectations issued several months ago.
BYD’s total sales volume of electric cars increased last year to 3.02 million cars, surpassing its American competitor Tesla.
The Chinese company’s profits soared by 80.72% to 30.04 billion yuan ($4.23 billion) last year.
Its electric car production-focused annual report revealed revenues surged by 42.04% to 602.32 billion yuan. Research and development spending rose by 112.15% to 39.58 billion yuan.
Foreign market revenue surged by 75.2% to 160.22 billion yuan, now accounting for 26.6% of total revenues, a 5.03 percentage point increase from 2022.
BYD sells its cars in 75 countries and territories worldwide, with invested factories in Brazil, Hungary, and Thailand.
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