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China has launched an anti-dumping investigation into imported European dairy merchandise, within the newest escalation of a commerce dispute with the EU.
The investigation comes a day after the European Fee revealed a sequence of further levies on Chinese language electrical car imports, regardless of opposition from Beijing.
The Chinese language commerce ministry mentioned on Wednesday that its probe into EU dairy imports was prompted by complaints from home producers over European subsidies. In line with a press release, the investigation will cowl “sure merchandise” together with lotions and cheeses.
The transfer marked Beijing’s strongest retaliation but towards Brussels’ EV tariffs. China has already opened anti-dumping probes into French cognac and EU pork imports and has lodged a criticism on the World Commerce Group.
The bloc’s chief diplomat, Josep Borrell, mentioned at an occasion in Spain this week that the EU “mustn’t be naive” however {that a} commerce struggle was “possibly . . . unavoidable”.
The European Fee mentioned that Brussels “takes observe” of China’s choice to launch an anti-subsidy probe into sure dairy merchandise and would analyse the process “very carefully”.
“The fee will firmly defend the pursuits of the EU dairy business . . . and intervene as acceptable to make sure that the investigation totally complies with related WTO guidelines,” it mentioned.
The European Union Chamber of Commerce in China mentioned Beijing’s motion “shouldn’t be thought-about a shock”.
“Regrettably, using commerce defence devices by one authorities is more and more being responded to seemingly in form by the recipient authorities,” the chamber mentioned, including that it hoped the investigation would “be carried out pretty and transparently”.
European dairy exports to China have been valued at about €1.8bn final 12 months, down from €2bn the 12 months earlier than, in accordance with European Fee commerce knowledge, and accounted for about 9.5 per cent of the EU’s complete dairy exports.
The Chinese language dairy business our bodies claimed that imported EU dairy merchandise had benefited from a complete of 20 subsidy programmes. Germany is the bloc’s largest producer of milk, butter and cheese, adopted by France.
The market share of imports in China’s toddler components market, the place competitors has elevated and laws have been tightened, fell from 51 per cent in 2019 to 44 per cent in 2023, in accordance with Dutch financial institution Rabobank.
China’s declining delivery price has additionally compelled home and overseas firms to push into new merchandise within the nation, reminiscent of these focusing on older customers.
Imports of milk powder and fluid milk have additionally fallen this 12 months due to increased home manufacturing, in accordance with estimates from the US Division of Agriculture in Might.
“Development in uncooked milk manufacturing continues to outpace consumption, creating an oversupply within the Chinese language market,” the report mentioned.
Extra reporting by Gloria Li in Hong Kong
