China slams ‘Made in Europe’ push, mulls retaliation
Facebook
Twitter
Flipboard
Send
Reddit
Linkedin
Messenger
Telegram
VK
Bluesky
Threads
Whatsapp
Beijing released a statement on Monday attacking the EU’s strategy to supercharge local industry, arguing that the European preference creates investment barriers and discrimination – and that countermeasures could follow.
China’s Ministry of Commerce has criticised the EU's Industrial Acceleration Act for allegedly imposing numerous restrictive requirements on foreign investment.
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
The European Commission launched its Industrial Accelerator Act in March, aiming to increase demand for low-carbon, European-made technologies and products through a slate of measures.
A spokesperson from China's Ministry of Commerce said that Beijing gave the EU executive its formal feedback on Friday, but publicly said on Monday that the pitch imposes numerous restrictive requirements on foreign investment and may violate World Trade Organisation (WTO) principles.
The spokesperson said the preferential "EU origin" tag in public procurement and public support policies constitutes investment barriers and institutional discrimination.
China is ready engage in dialogue with the EU to mitigate the policy's impact on the Asian giant, the spokesperson added, but if this fails, countermeasures to "firmly safeguard" Beijing's business interests could follow.
The EU's Industrial Acceleration Act targets three strategic sectors: clean technologies, car manufacturers, and energy-intensive industries such as aluminium, steel and cement.
The proposal includes thresholds such as a 70% EU-content requirement for electric vehicles, 25% for aluminium and 25% for cement.
"It (The Industrial Accelerator Act) will create jobs by directing taxpayers’ money to European production, decreasing our dependencies and enhancing our economic security and sovereignty," the European Commissioner for Industry Stéphane Séjourné said at the launch.
The European Commission proposed the Act after more than 200,000 European jobs were wiped-out in energy-intensive industries and the automotive sector since 2024, with 600,000 losses projected this decade in car-making alone.
The Commission's proposal to curb the problem must now be approved by the EU’s co-legislators, the European Parliament and the European Council, which represents member states.
Go to accessibility shortcuts Share CommentsRead more
