China warns EU of consequences in trade dispute

Beijing and Brussels have been arguing about the mutual trade relationship for a long time. Rumors of new EU measures are now prompting China to warn the EU against further steps.

Chinese exports: threats from Beijing. Photo: dpa

Beijing. China has warned the EU of consequences in the trade dispute if Brussels enforces trade policy measures despite ongoing talks. China will closely monitor the EU's further steps and "react decisively" should it take "discriminatory and restrictive measures" against Chinese companies or products, the Ministry of Commerce in Beijing said.

According to its own information, the authority responded to an unspecified media report. Accordingly, EU member states should work on a joint document to call on the EU Commission to more quickly formulate a trade instrument similar to the US model of Paragraph 301. Through Section 301, which is enshrined in the US Trade Code, the US government can take action against demonstrably “unjustified, unreasonable or discriminatory” trade practices.

The Chinese state newspaper “Global Times” referred to a blog post by EU-China relations analyst Noah Barkin. In the article published on Sunday, Barkin, citing EU officials, wrote that Germany and France had developed a joint paper. In it, they call on the Commission to accelerate the development of an instrument that Brussels can use to exclude China from the EU market.

If the EU pushes forward protectionist measures against China, the People's Republic will respond with a “strong policy toolbox,” the Global Times quoted an unnamed Chinese observer as saying. Possible countermeasures could therefore include investigations into discrimination, the security of supply chains or the influence of foreign subsidies.

The Ministry of Commerce further warned of damage to trust and disruption to ongoing consultations between the EU and China. The two sides have been holding trade and investment consultations since June.

In the middle of the month, EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič and China's Trade Minister Wang Wentao recently discussed contentious issues such as Chinese exports to the EU, market access for EU companies in China and Chinese export controls on rare earths. An EU Commission spokesman also announced Sefcovic's planned visit to Beijing on October 8th and 9th.