Top Chinese official visits Brussels next week amid trade tension

The provisional duties would take effect only after they are formally announced in the EU’s official journal on July 4, leaving a window still open for the two sides to seek a negotiated settlement that would avert a full-scale trade war.

Economy Minister Robert Habeck of Germany, which had pushed for lower EV duties in a bid to shield its automakers from retaliation by Beijing, is meanwhile due to visit China next week.

Beijing has slammed the EU decision as contradicting its stated goal of achieving a green transition. European officials, for their part, have insisted on achieving a level playing field that offsets the impact of Chinese state aid, while getting tougher with Beijing as it aligns with Russia in its war of aggression against Ukraine.