One day after the European Commission levied heavy tariffs, reaching 48pc in August, on subsidised solar panels made in China, the Far Eastern country announced it is considering a tit-for-tat move to levy a similar “anti-dumping” duty on wines made in EU, reports The Daily Telegraph.
Francois Hollande, the French President, has expressed alarm at a development that threatens exports worth €546m (£464m) for France and called for a special Brussels summit to discuss the escalating trade war between the EU and China.
“The President of the Republic expressed his desire that the European Commission take steps to organise a meeting to establish a united position of the 27 based on solidarity,” said Mr Hollande’s spokesman on Wednesday.
Echoing the language used by the EU before the commission hit Chinese solar panels with import tariffs, the Chinese trade ministry announced it had begun an anti-dumping investigation into EU wines at the request of Chinese wineries.
“The ministry has already received an application from the domestic wine industry, which accuses wines imported from Europe of entering China's market by use of unfair trade tactics such as dumping and subsidies,” said a ministry statement.
Read more of this report from The Daily Telegraph.