GENEVA, (Reuters) – China has taken the first step in initiating a trade dispute with Turkey at the World Trade Organization over its tariffs on imports of electric vehicles, its diplomatic mission said in a statement on Tuesday.
China is facing increasing trade pressures worldwide over its rising exports of electric vehicles, which many countries claim are being heavily subsidized by Beijing to support its sputtering economy.
“The discriminatory measure taken by Turkiye is against WTO rules, and is protectionist in nature. We urge Turkiye to follow WTO rules and immediately correct its measures,” the statement said, using the Turkish spelling of the country. The Turkish government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In June, Ankara announced it was imposing a 40% additional tariff on imports of vehicles from China and last month imposed strict conditions on the import of plug-in hybrid vehicles, including from China.
Despite these it has in recent months been working to deepen ties with Chinese car makers, inking a deal with China’s BYD earlier this year while saying last week that it was in the final stages of investment talks with Chery as well.
The European Union is also pressing ahead with hefty tariffs on China-made EVs, the EU executive said last week.
The “request for consultations” filed by China to the WTO is the first formal step in a trade dispute, and sometimes disputes are resolved at this stage. China also opened a WTO dispute against U.S. subsidies to protect its EV industry in March.
Reporting by Emma Farge; additional reporting by Tuvan Gumrukcu in Ankara; Editing by Miranda Murray and Susan Fenton
