How Chinese cars are beating European tariffs
Carmakers are adapting to Europe’s EV barriers
WHEN THE European Union increased tariffs on Chinese battery electric vehicles (EVs) in 2024, the logic was straightforward: raise prices and imports will fall. A study published by the Kiel Institute, a think-tank, estimated that higher levies would cause Chinese car exports to plunge by 25%. After more than a year, that forecast is wrong. According to China’s customs agency, car exports to Europe rose to nearly 1.2m in the 12 months to November, up by 26% from a year earlier (see chart 1). The data suggest that Europe’s failure to stem the rise of Chinese-made vehicles has less to do with weak tariffs than Chinese carmakers’ talent for steering around them.
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