BRUSSELS - The European Commission started an investigation on Wednesday into whether to impose tariffs to protect the European Union against Chinese electric vehicle (EV) imports benefiting from state subsidies.

“Global markets are now flooded with cheaper electric cars. And their price is kept artificially low by huge state subsidies,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in her annual address to the bloc’s parliament.

European carmakers have realised they have a fight on their hands to produce lower-cost electric vehicles and erase China’s lead in developing cheaper, more consumer-friendly models.

Chinese EV makers are stepping up efforts to expand overseas markets as competition intensifies at home and domestic growth eased. China’s auto exports surged 31 per cent in August following a 63 per cent jump in July, according to the China Passenger Car Association.

Of new EVs sold in Europe this year, 8 per cent were made by Chinese brands, up from 6 per cent last year and 4 per cent in 2021, according to autos consultancy Inovev.

In April, the founder of Nio said that Chinese electric vehicle makers should brace for the possibility of protectionist policies against them by foreign governments as they seize on their cost advantages to expand exports.

He estimated his company and other Chinese EV makers had a cost advantage of around 20 per cent over rivals such as Tesla, thanks to China’s grip over the supply chain and raw materials.

Dr Von der Leyen stressed the importance of electric vehicles to the EU’s ambitious environmental objectives.

“So I can announce today that the Commission is launching an anti-subsidy investigation into electric vehicles coming from China. Europe is open to competition. Not for a race to the bottom,” she told the European Parliament. REUTERS