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EU asks China to voluntarily limit hybrid car exports

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EU-China relations

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EU asks China to voluntarily limit hybrid car exports

Move comes as cheaper Chinese vehicles flood European market

!Rows of white BYD plug-in hybrid sedans parked closely together in a car storage yard in China.

*Imports of Chinese hybrids have increased more than 10-fold from 3,800 vehicles in October 2024 to 50,000 in July 2026

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Andy Bounds in Strasbourg and Joe Leahy in Beijing

Published8 hours ago

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The EU has asked China to voluntarily restrict exports of hybrid cars as part of a deal to prevent a trade war, as tensions between the two sides increase ahead of crunch meetings next month in Beijing.

European carmakers are making mass lay-offs as cheaper models made in China flood the market and Brussels wants Beijing to rein in its industry or face higher tariffs, three people familiar with the situation told the FT.

“If they will not limit their exports to our market then we will,” said an EU official. “This is about stopping deindustrialisation. We have to act. It’s about managed trade.”

Brussels is seeking a commitment from Beijing to restrict sales of China-made hybrid vehicles to about 15 per cent of the EU market compared with more than a third today, the people said.

The official added that Brussels had proposed a number of other products, including chemicals, where it wanted China to show restraint. The bloc also wanted China to buy more European exports, the official said.

The EU in June set an October deadline for “tangible results” in reducing its soaring trade deficit with China, with the two sides setting up the EU-China Trade and Investment Consultations (TIC) forum to try to tackle market access issues.

The EU’s €1bn a day trade deficit with China had “reached a tipping point”, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said on Wednesday.

The “second China shock . . . is already here”, she said in her annual State of the Union speech.

“Let me be clear: we will use all the tools at our disposal to rebalance our relationship. Words are good. But deeds are better,” she added.

EU trade commissioner Maroš Šefčovič was due to speak to Chinese commerce minister Wang Wentao on Thursday ahead of a trip to Beijing next month, a spokesperson confirmed.

One of the people familiar with the EU’s position said that by