BMW is pressuring Berlin to vote against a steep increase in European Union tariffs on Chinese-made electric cars.
BMW Chief Executive Officer Oliver Zipse said in a statement on Wednesday:
Additional tariffs harm globally active companies in this country and could provoke a trade dispute from which no one gains. The German government should therefore take a clear position.
EU member states are preparing to vote on Friday in favour of imposing tariffs of up to 45 per cent on electric cars made in China. A supermajority – the bloc’s 15 member states representing 65 per cent of the population – would be needed to block the initiative.
German officials signalled on Tuesday that the government planned to abstain rather than vote against it. Berlin expects a significant number of other countries to do the same, in which case blocking the imposition of duties would be quite difficult.
Germany has also signalled that it expects an agreement to be reached in the ongoing negotiations between the EU and China. Meanwhile, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron are expected to discuss the duties in Berlin on Wednesday.
The European Commission proposed the duties after concluding that China unfairly subsidises its electric car industry.
German carmakers oppose the duties, which they say could jeopardise sales in the world’s biggest auto market – if China retaliates. Mercedes-Benz Group AG CEO Ola Källenius has called for open markets in recent months, while Volkswagen AG CEO Oliver Blume has repeatedly expressed concern about a possible trade conflict with China.
