China pressures EU for talks to resolve ‘unfair’ trade barriers

Beijing has accused the European Union of imposing unfair “trade and investment barriers”, but has refrained from immediate retaliation as the two sides continue talks to resolve the dispute.

China’s Commerce Ministry announced on Thursday that it had concluded the EU’s recent investigations into Chinese enterprises under its Foreign Subsidies Regulation were “unfair and non-transparent”.

Brussels launched an investigation to determine whether Chinese government subsidies were undermining competition in the European market last year, prompting China to start its own probe in a tit-for-tat response.

The Chinese ministry’s statement did not disclose whether China would take any retaliatory measures in light of the probe’s findings.

Through bilateral consultations, China will request the EU to adjust or modify its practices to “provide an open, fair, just, non-discriminatory, and predictable environment for Chinese enterprises to invest and operate in Europe,” a commerce ministry spokesman told a media briefing on the same day.

The probe’s findings will provide China with evidence it can use during negotiations with the EU and a reasonable basis for potential retaliatory actions, said He Weiwen, a senior fellow at the Centre for China and Globalisation, a Beijing-based think tank.