New US tariffs on Chinese goods are set to redirect shipments to Europe and put increased pressure on Brussels, which is scrambling to avoid being caught in the trade war between Washington and Beijing.
President Joe Biden on Tuesday slapped tariffs of 100 per cent on Chinese electric vehicles and tripled the rate on steel and aluminium. He increased tariffs on solar cells to 50 per cent and said the rate on semiconductors would be doubled from 2025.
“The US has sent a very clear message that it wants minimum Chinese participation in its green transition,” said Yanmei Xie, a geopolitics analyst at Gavekal Research. “The EU being the remaining large developed market with green ambitions and generous subsidies will be a must-have market for Chinese exporters of clean-energy products.”