Source: Bloomberg
Author: Tom Hancock
After the announcement of an anti -subsidy survey of China Electric Vehicles, the European highest trading representatives soon settled to Beijing. Some people in the European Union had already prepared for the anger of China.
However, it was unexpected that the Chinese government did not reject dialogue, and did not make a statement that might worsen economic relations.Although Deputy Prime Minister He Lifeng expressed "concerns and dissatisfaction" against the anti -subsidy investigation, he agreed to set up financial and trade working groups with the European Union.
As China's economy loses its growth momentum, Beijing is quite cautious in dealing with the relationship with the EU's major trading partners.Economic slowdown, epidemic prevention restrictions, and tension with Western relations have led to the withdrawal from China's stock and bond markets. As of the end of June, foreign -funded holdings of stock bonds have decreased by 188 billion US dollars compared to the peak in December 2021.
In recent months, China has received four cabinet officials in Beijing in Beijing. Before Xi Jinping held possible talks with Biden in November, China and the United States resumed the establishment of an economic and financial work group.Although Italy plans to withdraw from the "Belt and Road", Xi Jinping still said on Tuesday that he is willing to promote the "healthy and stable" relationship between China and Italy.
In addition, Australian Prime Minister Albanis will soon visit China, indicating that Sino -Australian relations have also improved after falling into the trough in 2020.
"Beijing realized the urgent need to repair the relationship with the European Union," said Alicja Bachulska, an Asian project policy researcher in the European Foreign Relations Commission."This is why the wording is relatively gentle."
When Europe announced earlier this month, it was announced to launch an anti -subsidy survey of electric vehicles, Beijing initially criticized this move as "naked protectionist behavior", and a European official who did not want to be named revealed that Europe was worried about China's overwhelming response.It may cause a trade war.
But in the four -day trip to China in the four -day China trip to the traded specialist Valdis Dombrovskis, Beijing did not reiterate the previous criticism of the EU.However, Dombrovskis himself delivered a very tough speech on China, criticizing China's position on the issue of the Russia -Ukraine war on the issue of the country as a good investment destination, and he also threatened to take decisive measures to correct the increasingly serious trade imbalance.
Dombrovskis has reason to feel confident.For many years, Xi Jinping has never found a way to show that it can show that China is tough and will not scare away foreign investors.After the Trump administration implemented trade restrictions on China, China also formulated its own "unreliable entity" list, but it did not really use the tool until February this year.
A major EU commercial group warning in August warned that foreign companies' commitments to China have aesthetic fatigue.According to the Chinese EU Chamber of Commerce, although the Chinese government has promised to strengthen its help in private enterprises in the past year and treat private enterprises and state -owned enterprises equally, foreign capital has not seen substantial progress in the expectations of the reform.
Wilfred Martens Center for EUROPEAN Studies pays attention to China's policy director Peter Hefele, saying that China needs foreign capital and foreign technology to help its modernization plan, and Europe is the only region that can meet these key elements other than the United States.
"There is no doubt that the European Union is becoming more confident," said André Sapir, a former economic adviser of BRUEGEL senior researcher and former European Commission Chairman Prordi.He believes that starting a signal of anti -subsidy surveys of Chinese electric vehicles.
