China's Commerce Minister Wang Wentao recently stated that Chinese electric vehicle companies don't lean on subsidies to stay ahead, brushing off claims of 'overcapacity' from the U.S. and Europe as baseless.
During the roundtable meeting with Chinese companies in Paris, Wang initiated discussions on China's electric vehicle exports to Europe, as per a report by Reuters.
"China's electric vehicle companies rely on continuous technological innovation, perfect production and supply chain system and full market competition for rapid development, not relying on subsidies to gain competitive advantage," Wang stated.
This statement comes at a time when the world's largest electric vehicle market is facing a massive slowdown, owing to post-pandemic consumer spending cuts. The European Commission's investigation into whether China's electric vehicle industry has unfairly benefited from subsidies will be one of the key conversations taking place, as per the report.
The Commission has also started an investigation to weigh up the possibility of imposing tariffs on exports in order to shield European car manufacturers. The inquiry is set to wrap up by November, although provisional duties could be implemented earlier by the EU executive.
Janet Yellen, the U.S. Treasury Secretary, is currently visiting China, where she has voiced mounting global concerns about China's surplus industrial capacity. She highlighted that this situation is unhealthy for China and will negatively impact producers in other countries.
According to a statement from the commerce ministry on Monday, representatives from over 10 companies, including Geely, BYD, and CATL, participated in the meeting.
