China and the European Union held talks this week to explore ways to strengthen their economic and trade cooperation, with a focus on resuming negotiations on electric vehicle (EV) pricing commitments, China’s Ministry of Commerce said on Thursday.
In a video call on Tuesday, Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao spoke with European Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security Maros Sefcovic, with both sides exchanging views on trade relief measures and broader investment cooperation. The call came shortly before newly imposed tariffs by U.S. President Donald Trump on Chinese goods began taking effect.
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According to the Chinese ministry’s statement, the two parties agreed to “immediately carry out negotiations on electric vehicle price commitments,” in a move that could ease tensions following the European Union’s decision last October to impose additional tariffs of up to 35.3% on China-made EVs, on top of the EU’s standard 10% import duty.
“China is ready to deepen trade, investment and industrial cooperation with the European Union,” Wang said during the meeting, according to the ministry’s readout.
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Wang also called on both sides to uphold a rules-based multilateral trading system and commit to trade liberalisation and facilitation. “This will inject more stability and certainty into the world economy and global trade,” he said.
The discussion also touched on creating a more favourable business environment for enterprises, and trade transfer issues. The Chinese ministry noted that both sides plan to continue strengthening communication under the World Trade Organization (WTO) framework and to jointly promote WTO reform.
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Last week, China’s commerce ministry said Beijing and Brussels had agreed to restart talks on minimum price agreements for EV exports, though no timeline has been provided.
The renewed dialogue comes as global trade dynamics face heightened uncertainty. On Wednesday, Trump signalled a temporary easing of tariffs imposed on several countries, but simultaneously threatened to raise duties on Chinese imports to as much as 125%.
Source: Reuters