BEIJING: China’s commerce ministry said on Friday (Sep 5) it would impose temporary duties on European Union pork imports, after an investigation found evidence of dumping.
Beijing launched the probe last year during scrutiny by Brussels of Chinese state subsidies for the electric vehicle industry.
“Investigating authorities have preliminarily determined that imports of relevant pork and pig by-products originating in the European Union are being dumped,” a statement from China’s commerce ministry said.
Authorities have decided to implement “provisional anti-dumping measures in the form of deposits”, it added.
The import duties range from 15.6 per cent to 62.4 per cent and will enter into force on Sep 10, the statement continued.
The provisional measures are still subject to the commerce ministry investigation, which had already been extended until December.
China and the EU have navigated a challenging relationship in recent years, complicated greatly by Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
Beijing has never denounced Russia’s war nor called for it to withdraw its troops, and many of Ukraine’s allies believe that China has provided support to Moscow.
China insists it is a neutral party, regularly calling for an end to the fighting while also accusing Western countries of prolonging the conflict by arming Ukraine.
Earlier on Friday, Beijing’s foreign ministry said it “strongly opposes” calls by US President Donald Trump for European leaders to put economic pressure on China over the war in Ukraine.
