3 days Ago
Italy backs tariffs proposed by the European Commission on Chinese exports of electric vehicles (EVs), Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said on Monday before a meeting in Rome with China's commerce minister. "We support the duties that the EU Commission proposes, to protect the competitiveness of our companies," Tajani told daily Corriere della Sera in an interview. Minister Wang Wentao is visiting Europe for discussions on the European Union's anti-subsidy case against China-made EVs as the vote on more tariffs looms.
He was meeting Tajani on Monday morning and will hold talks with the European Commission's Executive Vice President and Trade Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis on Sept. 19. "We want to work on a trade plan based on equality, we demand equal access for our products in their markets.
Our companies must compete on equal terms," Tajani added. Italy is aiming for a "climate of positive cooperation, and real reciprocity to avoid dumping and obstacles from Beijing, that at times are incomprehensible," he said. Italy initially supported tariffs in a non-binding vote of EU members in July but Industry Minister Adolfo Urso told Reuters last week that he expected a negotiated solution.
The proposed duties will be subject to a vote by the EU's 27 members. They will be implemented by the end of October unless a qualified majority of 15 EU members representing 65 per cent of the EU population vote against them..
