Britain Expected to Impose Tariffs on Chinese Electric Cars, The Times Reports
Chinese-made cars accounted for 14% of British new-car sales in 2025 as EU officials push Britain to match higher tariffs on imports.
- On Sunday, The Times reported that Britain is expected to impose tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, aiming to align British trade policy with the European Union.
- EU officials told Prime Minister Andy Burnham that Britain must align with their trade policy to avoid discriminatory treatment under the bloc's proposed "Made in Europe" rules.
- Chinese-Made cars accounted for 14 per cent of British new-car sales in 2025, according to the European Automobile Manufacturers Association, while China's year-to-date EV exports exceeded 2.1 million, up 53 per cent.
- Following an anti-subsidy investigation in 2024, the bloc imposed countervailing duties ranging from 7.8 to 35.3 per cent on Chinese battery EVs, and ministers are preparing a 45 per cent levy.
- Amid concerns that Beijing is "dumping" state-subsidised vehicles, British business minister Jonathan Reynolds is drafting a potential tariff package to address the influx of Chinese cars into Britain.
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Britain expected to impose tariffs on Chinese electric cars, The Times reports
Oct 4 : Britain is expected to impose tariffs on Chinese electric cars, The Times reported on Sunday.British business minister Jonathan Reynolds is drawing up a package of potential tariffs to be imposed on Chinese car imports amid concerns that Beijing is "dumping" state-subsidised vehicles into Britain, the
Britain is facing an increasingly difficult position in automotive trade policy. While London continues to refrain from imposing protective tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, Brussels is threatening to block British manufacturers from the EU market with protectionist measures, The Guardian reported.
Britain's car industry is faced with a “difficult choice” between the markets of China and the UK does not impose tariffs on cheap Chinese cars, risking EU barriers to its exports. Share of Chinese brands increased to 12%.
Can Britain really afford to diverge from EU tariffs on Chinese EVs?
The European Union’s demand that Britain raise tariffs on Chinese cars exposes an awkward truth about post-Brexit trade. Britain might have left the EU, but it cannot easily escape the bloc’s industrial policy. According to the Financial Times, EU officials have told Prime Minister Andy Burnham that Britain needs to align more closely with EU trade policy towards China if it wants British manufacturers to avoid discriminatory treatment under the…
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