China protests over EU move to hike tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles

BEIJING (AP) — China’s Commerce Ministry has accused the European Union of making unreasonable demands in its investigation into imports of Chinese electric vehicles before announcing it was raising tariffs by as much as 38%. Ministry spokesman He Yadong said the European side had demanded excessive amounts of information from Chinese automakers and then unfairly accused the Chinese companies of failing to cooperate. Speaking to reporters in a weekly briefing in Beijing, He said Chinese companies were “shocked and disappointed” and that EU allegations lacked a “factual and legal basis.” The Chinese spokesman did not announce any new measures in retaliation. On Monday, Beijing said it was opening an anti-dumping investigation into pork exports from Europe.