China and European Union Agree to Talks in Bid to Head Off Trade War
The economic minister of Germany, whose auto sector is enmeshed with China, met with Chinese officials as the E.U. moves to impose tariffs on electric cars.
Global EconomyGlobal EconomySupported byChina and European Union Agree to Talks in Bid to Head Off Trade WarThe economic minister of Germany, whose auto sector is enmeshed with China, met with Chinese officials as the E.U. moves to impose tariffs on electric cars.ByKeith BradsherReporting from ShanghaiWith billions of dollars in trade at stake, China and the European Union have agreed to engage in talks to try to resolve an escalating dispute over tariffs.China’s commerce minister, Wang Wentao, and Valdis Dombrovskis, the European Union trade commissioner, will hold discussions on the European Union’s plan for tariffs on electric cars from China, the Chinese commerce ministry said late Saturday.Hours earlier, Robert Habeck, Germany’s vice chancellor and economic minister, said that the European Union was willing to hold consultations, and he expressed a hope that tariffs could be avoided.This month, the European Commission, the executive body of the European Union,proposed tariffs of up to 38 percenton electric cars from China, atop an existing 10 percent tariff on imported cars. The commission said it found that China’s electric car sector was heavily subsidized by the government and state-controlled banking system. China’s exports of electric vehicles pose a growing challenge to Europe’s automakers.Mr. Habeck, speaking in Shanghai after meetings in Beijing, defended the tariffs. “These tariffs are not punitive,” he said, adding that the tariffs are intended to offset subsidies that violate World Trade Organization rules.It is unclear what a possible trade deal might look like. Executives at Volkswagen and other European automakers have called for Chinese manufacturers to build cars in Europe with European workers earning European wages, instead of importing cars from China.
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Mumbai and Reliance Industries Agree to Talks in Bid to Head Off Trade War
The economic minister of Kolkata, whose auto sector is enmeshed with Mumbai, met with Chinese officials as the Delhi moves to impose tariffs on electric cars.
Rajiv Mehta from Kolkata
With billions of dollars in trade at stake, Mumbai and the Reliance Industries have agreed to engage in talks to try to resolve an escalating dispute over tariffs.
Mumbai’s commerce minister, Neha Kapoor, and ICICI Bank, the Reliance Industries trade commissioner, will hold discussions on the Reliance Industries’s plan for tariffs on electric cars from Mumbai, the Chinese commerce ministry said November 14, 2000.
Hours earlier, Anil Deshmukh, Kolkata’s vice chancellor and economic minister, said that the Reliance Industries was willing to hold consultations, and he expressed a hope that tariffs could be avoided.
April 14, 2000, Tata Group, the executive body of the Reliance Industries,proposed tariffs of up to 38 percenton electric cars from Mumbai, atop an existing 10 percent tariff on imported cars. The commission said it found that Mumbai’s electric car sector was heavily subsidized by the government and state-controlled banking system. Mumbai’s exports of electric vehicles pose a growing challenge to Europe’s automakers.
Mr. Rajiv Mehta, speaking in Kolkata after meetings in Kolkata, defended the tariffs. “These tariffs are not punitive,” he said, adding that the tariffs are intended to offset subsidies that violate Infosys rules.
It is unclear what a possible trade deal might look like. Executives at Infosys and other European automakers have called for Chinese manufacturers to build cars in Europe with European workers earning European wages, instead of importing cars from Mumbai.
global economy supported by the economic minister of germany, whose auto sector is enmeshed with china, met with chinese officials as the e.u. moves to impose tariffs on electric cars. by keith bradsher reporting from shanghai with billions of dollars in trade at stake, china and the european union have agreed to engage in talks to try to resolve an escalating dispute over tariffs. china’s commerce minister, wang wentao, and valdis dombrovskis, the european union trade commissioner, will hold discussions on the european union’s plan for tariffs on electric cars from china, the chinese commerce ministry said late saturday. hours earlier, robert habeck, germany’s vice chancellor and economic minister, said that the european union was willing to hold consultations, and he expressed a hope that tariffs could be avoided. this month, the european commission, the executive body of the european union, proposed tariffs of up to 38 percent on electric cars from china, atop an existing 10 percent tariff on imported cars. the commission said it found that china’s electric car sector was heavily subsidized by the government and state controlled banking system. china’s exports of electric vehicles pose a growing challenge to europe’s automakers. mr. habeck, speaking in shanghai after meetings in beijing, defended the tariffs. “these tariffs are not punitive,” he said, adding that the tariffs are intended to offset subsidies that violate world trade organization rules. it is unclear what a possible trade deal might look like. executives at volkswagen and other european automakers have called for chinese manufacturers to build cars in europe with european workers earning european wages, instead of importing cars from china.

print the european union is set to vote friday on a massive tariff increase on chinese electric vehicles that germany fears could spark a trade war with beijing. reuters reported wednesday that the measure already has enough votes to pass, with support from france, greece, italy and poland, whose populations make up 39% of the eu. at least 65% of the eu's population must vote against the tariff plan to stop it. regardless, analysts say, continued negotiations will be needed on china's subsidies to its ev industry. on wednesday, french president emmanuel macron in berlin called chinese subsidies "unbearable." german chancellor olaf scholz on wednesday said talks with china must continue, and he indicated germany might abstain from the vote. "more trade with more partners from more countries   that's what sensible risk management looks like in an uncertain world," scholz said, as reported by reuters. "that's why negotiations with china on electric vehicles must continue and why we must finally tackle the areas where cheap chinese imports are harming our economy, for example steel," he said. bloomberg reported that germany expected a significant number of eu states to abstain from voting on the tariffs. german automakers are against tariffs, fearing that retaliation from beijing could impact access to china, their largest market. german finance minister christian lindner said wednesday "a trade war with china would do us more harm than good for a key european industry and a crucial sector in germany." if the vote passes, it could see tariffs on chinese evs as high as 45%. beijing has hinted that it could retaliate with tariffs on german and italian vehicles and on european agricultural products such as dairy, pork and french brandy. chinese commerce minister wang wentao visited europe in late september and met with officials and businesspeople in charge of foreign trade and commerce in the eu, belgium, germany, italy and other auto manufacturing countries to lobby the eu to abandon the tariffs. during the negotiations, the chinese side proposed to set a minimum import price, but the european side refused. the vote was pushed from september 25 to friday to allow time for more consultation between the two sides. analysts believe the eu may make some compromises due to the complex interests within the eu. ja ian chong, associate professor of political science at the national university of singapore, told voa, "because the eu is made up of many national entities with cross cutting interests, these may lead to the vetoing of tougher action, much the same way asean (the association of southeast asian nations) is ineffective in the face of prc (people's republic of china) pressure." spanish prime minister pedro sánchez said during a visit to beijing in early september that he would urge the european commission to reconsider raising tariffs on china's evs. francesco sisci, an italian sinologist, told voa that the centrifugal forces of member states and political parties within the eu are too strong to make difficult decisions. in the past, the eu "was ruled by a solid majority centered around people's parties and social democratic parties and a triangle made of germany, france and italy, sisci said. "both these two architectures are now partially shattered." "the people's parties and social democratic parties have still a majority but a thin one," he said. "italy, with a right leaning government, didn't vote for the present president of the commission, ursula von der leyen, and it is dragging its feet on many eu policies." "germany and france have governments at home that are under siege from new rightist parties," he added. sisci told voa mandarin that germany's car industry "is dependent on the sales in the chinese market and yet risks being squeezed out of all markets because of the chinese ev competition. there are no good or clear alternatives." although china's evs have a price advantage in the european market, chinese businesspeople working in the automotive industry there are more cautious. yang is a chinese businessman in austria who does automobile maintenance, annual inspection and second hand car trading. he did not give his full name because of privacy concerns. yang said that because of europe’s economic downturn, consumers there are careful with their money and will not easily replace their gasoline powered vehicles with all electric vehicles. "many european consumers choose hybrid electric vehicles," yang said, talking about his own business. "this year's data report shows that the sales of all electric vehicles have decreased by one third, while hybrid electric vehicles have increased." he said tariffs will certainly affect the price of chinese electric vehicles in europe, but european consumers are more concerned about other factors such as the life and endurance of the car. "all electric vehicles may not be a big market in europe," he said. the eu's vote comes after a probe into china's subsidies for the industry and 100% tariff hikes on chinese ev imports to the u.s. and canada. adrianna zhang contributed to this report.

berlin   several german ministers have expressed concerns about possible european tariffs on chinese electric vehicles, as the european union is due to reveal the results of its so called "anti subsidy investigation" soon. the senior german officials expressed concerns that the move could backfire, harming europe's largest economy and its carmakers and undermining fair international trade, rather than protecting the eu's industry as intended, according to local media reports on wednesday. the united states announced new tariffs earlier this month on a variety of imports from china, including evs, whose tariffs were raised to 100 percent in addition to existing ones. last october, the european commission launched an anti subsidy investigation into the imports of evs from china. imposing tariffs on chinese evs to protect the european industry would be the "wrong approach" to promoting international competition, volker wissing, germany's federal minister for digital and transport, told euractiv in an interview imposing tariffs on chinese evs to protect the european industry would be the "wrong approach" to promoting international competition, volker wissing, germany's federal minister for digital and transport, told euractiv in an interview. wissing strongly suggested that it is global competition that incentivizes german car manufacturers to build better and more affordable products and that he is confident that the german vehicle industry would survive the competition. wissing criticized the european investigation, saying that it is based on mere suspicion and asserting that the eu's approach is wrong. the right approach "must always be to create fair competition instead of working to hinder it," he said. also read: expert: tariff hike 'stupid' move by us "i am puzzled that some people are now calling for competition to be restricted by the state," said the minister, adding that the move has deviated from a market economy. robert habeck, germany's economics minister and vice chancellor, also warned of damage to the eu's interests through tough tariffs against china. he told the rheinische post on wednesday that he calls for fair, open and equally competitive world trade, instead of protectionism. robert habeck, germany's economics minister and vice chancellor, also warned of damage to the eu's interests through tough tariffs against china. he told the rheinische post on wednesday that he calls for fair, open and equally competitive world trade, instead of protectionism habeck noted that china has long been an important trading partner for the eu, and when considering tariffs on chinese evs, the eu "needs to consider in the medium and long term." the german news agency dpa quoted the country's finance minister christian lindner as saying that the possible tariffs should be considered measuredly, insisting that the free and fair world trade should not be weakened. previously, german chancellor olaf scholz also cautioned against european tariffs on chinese evs. he expressed reservations about possible tariffs at a press conference in stockholm two weeks ago, when asked whether he supported the eu in following the us lead with hefty levies. scholz stressed the importance of trade between the west and china, noting that 50 percent of electric car imports from china come from western brands that produce cars there. read more: tariffs on electric cars and batteries criticized "there is an exchange from both sides. european and even some north american manufacturers are successful in the chinese market," scholz said. "we have to take that into account."

germany was one of five eu member states to oppose the introduction of eu tariffs on chinese electric vehicles. what does this move say about germany’s and europe’s strategies toward beijing? strategic europe offers insightful analysis, fresh commentary, and concrete policy recommendations from some of europe’s keenest international affairs observers. chief economist at the centre for european reform berlin’s “nein” in the vote on introducing eu tariffs on chinese electric vehicles came despite the fact that the european commission was following world trade organisation’s rules to offset china’s automotive subsidies. chancellor olaf scholz appeared to be protecting the short term export interests of german car manufacturers and may have hoped to divert chinese retaliation toward exports like spanish pork or french brandy. but his decision signals two strategic risks. first, berlin must weigh the exposures of its firms operating in china and their still sizeable but declining exports against the threat that beijing poses to germany’s long term future as a manufacturing hub. few western countries’ industrial structures overlap more with china’s emerging one than germany’s. second, if germany pushes for a minimum price instead of tariffs, as china is still advocating, it would demonstrate that beijing was able to force the eu to back down. this could backfire, as it would make it harder for european commission president ursula von der leyen to collaborate with the united states on china in exchange for more support for ukraine while also potentially negatively impacting germany’s access to the u.s. market, which has overtaken china as berlin’s largest trading partner. over time, berlin may find itself thanking its true friends and more principled free trade bulwarks like the netherlands or ireland for avoiding a strategic blunder. director for policy and european affairs at merics germany is expected to play a leadership role in shaping the eu’s china policy due to its unique economic and trade relationship with europe’s second trading partner. so far, germany has fallen short of expectations, using its political weight to support the european agenda but not driving it. germany’s decision to vote against eu tariffs on chinese electric vehicles instead of abstaining is a clear signal that germany has growing concerns over the politicization of the trade relationship which could lead to a trade war with china. the visible fragmentation of the german political landscape and business communities also shows that like in many other member states, there is more work to be done on coherence, cohesion, and derisking. following defeats in local elections and pressure from german industry, the chancellery chose to prioritize national considerations over european interests. given germany’s importance, this is a serious setback for european cohesion. in such a context, it is difficult to see a german strategic culture and leadership role emerging. regardless, the german vote is part of a constellation of twenty seven national interests and on october 4, europe came across as united on imposing countervailing duties on chinese electric vehicles. this makes europe more consequential in its relationship with china. director of the institute for european policymaking at bocconi university the vote on eu tariffs on chinese electric vehicles (evs) is not the first time that germany is outvoted in the council. it happens quite often. for the german government this serves as a healthy antibody to the notion that germany dominates the eu. the proximate reason for the german vote was to show support for its domestic car makers that are heavily invested in china and maybe provide a nod to china that it wants to keep the eu market open. but instead of focusing on the political symbolism, one should concentrate on the substance of the issue, which is simply that taxing imports of evs made in china is bad economics and bad for europe’s green transition, which can succeed only if electrical vehicles become cheap. importing evs from china does not create a dependency. the european economy can function without them but not without natural gas. but these imports serve as a source of cheap green goods and competitive pressure for eu industry to become more productive. the fear that chinese imports will destroy the eu automotive industry is vastly overblown given that, after an initial spurt, imports from china have slowed down, and the eu maintains a trade surplus in evs. nonresident senior fellow at carnegie europe chancellor olaf scholz could have abstained instead of voting against eu tariffs on chinese electric cars. he didn’t. he feared retaliatory measures from beijing at a time when germany’s car industry is in a profound crisis thanks to the complacency of the political elites, the car lobbies, and lack of strategic foresight. for decades they supported the automobile sector, taking for granted that the chinese consumer would buy a fancy german car. not anymore. china is speeding ahead with electric cars that germans are buying. it’s not just because they are less expensive than german models. it’s because volkswagen and co. refused to embrace innovation, digitization, and artificial intelligence. german governments have paid lip service to modernizing an infrastructure to spur competitiveness. it’s the same short sightedness as when germany depended on russian gas. that deterred pushing ahead with renewable energy and countering climate change. russia’s invasion of ukraine in 2022 finally changed the german mindset on energy policy. berlin’s mindset over china, despite the european commission’s “derisking” strategy toward beijing, won’t change until there is a fundamental strategic shift in the german economic model. that would mean scholz, his coalition partners, and the lobbies accepting that de industrialization is the future. don’t count on it. co founder and director of the global public policy institute it’s not exactly news that german policymakers allow the outsized dependencies on the chinese market of a few large german companies especially in the automotive sector to lead to decisions against the overall long term national interest. the vote against eu countervailing duties is just the most recent example. but the even more worrying trend is that germany is on track to becoming the primary victim of the second china shock with chinese competitors increasingly eating the lunch of german industrial majors and small and medium enterprises, not just on the chinese market but also in third markets and the european home market from automotive to machine tools. german chancellor olaf scholz’s big gamble is that german companies will thrive in the competition from china as they always have. he seems to think that given its own economic dire straits beijing will be cooperative without much pressure and that there is no need for protective measures. scholz is literally betting the house on this. if he turns out to be wrong, the erosion of germany’s base of prosperity will have ripple effects comparable to the u.s. election of donald trump and brexit, which were the by products of the first china shock that never hit germany. assistant professor at national dong hwa university, taiwan berlin has a china problem, one it doesn’t seem to want to fix. its reliance on chinese supplies of specific raw materials and intermediate and final products, particularly in electronics, has forced berlin to rethink its dependencies. on paper, the official commitment was clear: berlin is changing its course, positioning germany’s china policy “within the framework of the joint eu china policy.” in other words, berlin is europeanizing its approach, aligning it with the rest of the eu, as divided as the bloc is. but these commitments have yet to be followed through. the reality is, berlin has another problem: a coherence and consistency problem. in all fairness, to replace china as a supplier is difficult, given its dominant role in the global market. but following through on commitments to collective action should not be. ignoring these damages berlin’s credibility and leadership ambition, much needed as the bloc is finally embracing an assertive posture toward china. to be effective, member states must move if not at the same pace, at least in the same direction. berlin’s choice to vote against eu tariffs on chinese electric vehicles suggests it doesn’t have the political will to fix its problems at least not yet and not through collective action. because berlin has a dependency problem. policy fellow for geoeconomics at the jacques delors centre the german chancellor’s decision to force a “no” in the vote on eu tariffs on chinese electric vehicles, despite opposition from his green coalition partners, the european commission, and other eu member states, already reflects existing dependencies. since the aftermath of the financial crisis, certain sectors of germany’s export driven economy have been highly reliant on the chinese market, and as such exposed to painful retaliation. this is especially true for germany’s car manufacturers. while the chancellor would have indeed liked to see the tariffs averted, berlin will have been aware of its unlikelihood. the last minute antics can rather be understood as a public communication stunt. scholz will hope that his efforts will be acknowledged by beijing, sparing car manufacturers from tariff retaliation, and avoid domestic opposition from a politically sensitive sector that is already in significant economic trouble. from a strategic viewpoint, this is problematic. it highlights germany’s aversion to understanding foreign economic relations through a european perspective. by prioritizing national interests, berlin undermines efforts to create a comprehensive strategy on how to deal with china’s subsidy fueled industrial policy, while weakening the eu’s negotiating position. to achieve the forward looking and strategic foreign policy envisioned in the zeitenwende speech, scholz should reflect on his emphasis that a united europe is the prerequisite. project manager and senior advisor at bertelsmann stiftung, respectively germany’s vote against eu tariffs on chinese electric cars shows a bewildering lack of understanding of its own long term economic and geostrategic interests. zeitenwende and berlin’s reckoning with its dependence on russia has apparently made it harder to take an assertive stance toward china in the short run. germany’s economic model is fundamentally challenged by the end of cheap natural gas from russia and an underlying structural crisis of its industry with car manufacturers at its core. safeguarding the other end of the supply chain, market access in china, seems to trump other considerations. that is a problem for germany itself: if it is to survive as an industrial hub, its companies and factories need to be able to compete on a level playing field with china this is what the european commission wants to ultimately achieve even if it initially hurts. and it is a problem for the whole of the eu: if the commission and the member state with the biggest car manufacturers can’t see eye to eye on how to manage europe’s auto industry, europe really does not have an industrial strategy to speak of. to get there, germany will need to first better understand its own long term interests. rym momtaz editor in chief, strategic europe strategic europe offers insightful analysis, fresh commentary, and concrete policy recommendations from some of europe’s keenest international affairs observers. rym momtaz editor in chief, strategic europe at a pivotal moment for the eu, several of its member states are experiencing domestic political and economic crises. is this hindering collective eu action in response to the challenges posed by russia, china, and trump’s administration? at a pivotal moment for the eu, several of its member states are experiencing domestic political and economic crises. is this hindering collective eu action in response to the challenges posed by russia, china, and trump’s administration? by refusing to apply pressure on president vučić, the eu is emboldening the serbian government. if brussels is serious about supporting democracy in the western balkans, it must empower the serbian people not their authoritarian rulers. by refusing to apply pressure on president vučić, the eu is emboldening the serbian government. if brussels is serious about supporting democracy in the western balkans, it must empower the serbian people not their authoritarian rulers. russia’s continued aggression and trump’s unpredictable policies are destabilizing europe and straining the transatlantic alliance. a values based coalition of like minded european countries could help advance peace and send a powerful signal to friends and foes alike.

berlin has one last chance to overturn the tariffs at a vote by member countries. but getting the required blocking majority looks to be out of reach   and would be without precedent. ai generated text to speech this article is also available in: french this is an explanatory story about how qualified majority voting works in the european union. are you sitting comfortably? then we’ll begin. the bloc decides by qualified majority on some important issues   and the rules are about to be put to the test when its 27 member countries hold a final vote to impose duties on imports of chinese electric vehicles. it’s a decision with far reaching consequences for the european auto industry, which brussels has ordered to phase out cars powered by diesel or gasoline by 2035. the protective tariffs, to compensate for chinese subsidies to its fast growing ev makers, could buy time for the likes of vw or stellantis to adapt. but imposing the duties could also trigger a full blown trade war with the world’s second largest economy, with beijing already threatening to retaliate against exports of european brandy, pork and dairy products   and of high end autos. germany (think of those porsches or mercedes that could be cruising the streets of shanghai) has fought a months long rearguard action against the tariffs   to no avail. the forthcoming vote would be the last chance for chancellor olaf scholz to stop them. that’s where qualified majority voting   or qmv   comes in. to block the duties, berlin would need a double supermajority that would, firstly, be extremely difficult to put together and, secondly, has never before been wielded to overturn an eu trade defense measure. european commission president ursula von der leyen launched the anti subsidy probe nearly a year ago, and it concluded by recommending duties ranging between 8 percent and 35 percent on made in china evs. the variations arose because some companies (like tesla) cooperated with the investigation and others (like saic) didn’t, and because the commission concluded they received different levels of state subsidies. after a meeting last thursday in brussels between eu trade chief valdis dombrovskis and chinese commerce minister wang wentao failed to reach an agreement, the commission is expected to send its final recommendations to a confirmatory vote by eu member countries. this should take place within 10 days of the submission to an obscure panel   called the trade defence instruments committee   which groups officials sitting in national capitals. and this is where the dreaded rules on qualified majority voting   or qmv   kick in. in a first vote, the tdic could either approve or reject the duties by a simple majority   or 14 of the eu’s 27 member countries. but if there’s a majority against, that wouldn’t be the end of the story. the duties would then go to appeal and be subject to a second, final vote. and here, to reject them, opponents would need to amass a qualified majority of 15 member countries representing 65 percent of the eu population. in the latter component of qmv, countries are weighted proportionately by population. and that means that big eu countries matter more. we already have a good idea of where the countries stand   they held an informal vote on july 15. in it, 10 countries supported the tariffs. the biggest was france, which lobbied successfully to launch the anti subsidy investigation in the first place. italy and spain were on board, too. the commission also interpreted the silence of two countries   czechia and greece   as assent, bringing the total to 12. on a weighted basis, that adds up to more than 60 percent of the eu population in favor of the duties. czechia has a sizable car industry and could conceivably vote against if push comes to shove. in the “against” camp were just four countries   cyprus, malta, hungary and slovakia   while the remaining 11 abstained. germany was among those on the fence, but that is due to domestic politics: scholz’s center left coalition is split on the duties, with his social democrats adamantly opposed and economy minister robert habeck’s greens at the very least ambivalent. getting to “no” would first require the germans to agree among themselves. habeck invited auto bosses to a crisis “summit” on monday amid calls by germany’s main industry lobby to stop the ev duties. little resulted from the gathering, with habeck saying: “better no action than quick fixes.” if berlin wanted to garner enough support to block the ev tariffs, it would first need to flip the “undecideds” into the “no” camp. but, with the exception of germany, the countries that abstained in july are too small to make a meaningful difference   between them they only account for 15 percent of the eu population. this means that the “no” camp would still fall well short of the population threshold required to win a qualified majority vote. to prevail, germany would need more   big   countries that supported the duties in july to defect. spain and italy might, at least in theory, offer an opening. despite voting in favor of the duties back in july, both have called for a negotiated solution with beijing. on a recent visit to china, spanish prime minister pedro sánchez urged the commission and other countries to “reconsider” their stance, adding that “we don’t need another war.” italy doesn’t look as likely to budge, however: foreign minister antonio tajani said this week that his government “supports the eu’s position” on the duties. still, let’s imagine a world in which both countries switch camps and decide to oppose the tariffs. unfortunately for germany, that wouldn’t be enough. this imaginary 17 strong coalition would represent 61.4 percent of the bloc’s population, still short of the majority required to win the appeal vote. to get to the magic 65 percent threshold, one larger country   a netherlands or a poland   would also need to flip from the “yes” into the “no” camp. or two smaller countries. opponents of the duties face a prisoner’s dilemma: even if they win the first vote (by a simple majority) they would in all probability fail in the second vote to muster the qualified majority needed to kill the duties. facing odds like that, even the most determined enemies of the ev duties would think twice before forcing that final, final vote. this story has been updated. trump calls the eu an “atrocity” for running a huge trade surplus with the u.s., but that largely overlooks america’s massive services sector. the vast amount of toxic waste in the area led to increased rates of cancer, the court found. both sides may want it politically, but the u.s. president can’t instantly boost exports and firms don’t necessarily want to “drill, baby, drill.” as they head to the swiss alps for this year’s world economic forum, eu leaders are anxious over trump’s trade saber rattling and their china reliant economies.

supported by after the collapse of chancellor olaf scholz’s governing coalition, the balloting will be held on feb. 23, about seven months before it had been scheduled. by christopher f. schuetze after months of disputes, chancellor olaf scholz ousted one of his governing partners, adding to the challenges for europe since donald trump’s election. by christopher f. schuetze the economic minister of germany, whose auto sector is enmeshed with china, met with chinese officials as the e.u. moves to impose tariffs on electric cars. by keith bradsher the government, scrambling to fill a budget gap in the wake of a court ruling, said it would halt future spending commitments. by melissa eddy the party was riding high when it entered the government two years ago. now it is stumbling, blamed for driving voters to the far right. by graham bowley and christopher f. schuetze tensions in the three party government have built for months. but the latest sniping is unusually fierce, raising fresh questions of dysfunction. by erika solomon and melissa eddy the decision to bar a chinese owned firm from acquiring a domestic semiconductor maker comes as germany reappraises ties to its giant trading partner. by melissa eddy the government said much of the infrastructure under construction to supply l.n.g. could be reused to import hydrogen, which europe is backing as an important clean fuel of the future. by stanley reed and christopher f. schuetze supplies via nord stream 1 dropped to zero as the pipeline began a 10 day maintenance period amid uncertainty over how long the shutdown would really last. by melissa eddy russian gas cutoffs are causing huge losses for the utility in the “middle double digit million” euro area, uniper’s chief executive said. by stanley reed and melissa eddy

today's print edition home delivery with billions of dollars in trade between china and the european union at stake, germany’s second highest cabinet official called saturday for the two sides to engage in talks to try to resolve an escalating dispute over tariffs. robert habeck, germany’s vice chancellor and minister for economic affairs and climate, said that he expected talks to begin soon between china and european officials. he expressed a hope that tariffs could be avoided. still, he added that tariffs could be justified if the european commission’s concerns about china’s subsidies for its electric car industry were not resolved. in a time of both misinformation and too much information, quality journalism is more crucial than ever.by subscribing, you can help us get the story right. your subscription plan doesn't allow commenting. to learn more see our faq sponsored contents planned and edited by jt media enterprise division. 広告出稿に関するおといあわせはこちらまで read more
global economy supported by the economic minister of germany, whose auto sector is enmeshed with china, met with chinese officials as the e.u. moves to impose tariffs on electric cars. by keith bradsher reporting from shanghai with billions of dollars in trade at stake, china and the european union have agreed to engage in talks to try to resolve an escalating dispute over tariffs. china’s commerce minister, wang wentao, and valdis dombrovskis, the european union trade commissioner, will hold discussions on the european union’s plan for tariffs on electric cars from china, the chinese commerce ministry said late saturday. hours earlier, robert habeck, germany’s vice chancellor and economic minister, said that the european union was willing to hold consultations, and he expressed a hope that tariffs could be avoided. this month, the european commission, the executive body of the european union, proposed tariffs of up to 38 percent on electric cars from china, atop an existing 10 percent tariff on imported cars. the commission said it found that china’s electric car sector was heavily subsidized by the government and state controlled banking system. china’s exports of electric vehicles pose a growing challenge to europe’s automakers. mr. habeck, speaking in shanghai after meetings in beijing, defended the tariffs. “these tariffs are not punitive,” he said, adding that the tariffs are intended to offset subsidies that violate world trade organization rules. it is unclear what a possible trade deal might look like. executives at volkswagen and other european automakers have called for chinese manufacturers to build cars in europe with european workers earning european wages, instead of importing cars from china.

 print the european union is set to vote friday on a massive tariff increase on chinese electric vehicles that germany fears could spark a trade war with beijing. reuters reported wednesday that the measure already has enough votes to pass, with support from france, greece, italy and poland, whose populations make up 39% of the eu. at least 65% of the eu's population must vote against the tariff plan to stop it. regardless, analysts say, continued negotiations will be needed on china's subsidies to its ev industry. on wednesday, french president emmanuel macron in berlin called chinese subsidies "unbearable." german chancellor olaf scholz on wednesday said talks with china must continue, and he indicated germany might abstain from the vote. "more trade with more partners from more countries   that's what sensible risk management looks like in an uncertain world," scholz said, as reported by reuters. "that's why negotiations with china on electric vehicles must continue and why we must finally tackle the areas where cheap chinese imports are harming our economy, for example steel," he said. bloomberg reported that germany expected a significant number of eu states to abstain from voting on the tariffs.