War on tariffs

Former US President Donald Trump was the first to impose high tariffs, i.e. taxes paid by Americans, on solar panels, vehicles and a wide range of other items made in China.
After that, the Biden administration decided to maintain these tariffs and even increase some of them — including solar panels, batteries, computer chips, steel and aluminum.
In addition, President Biden quadrupled tariffs on electric vehicles from China — from 25% to 100% — a move designed to boost US jobs and manufacturing.
"I am determined that the future of electric vehicles in America is made by unionized workers. Period!" Biden said.

Recently, the European Union raised tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, as a measure taken by Brussels to protect the EU's motor industry. The new tariffs for individual producers range from 17.4% to 37.6%.
The European Commission has confirmed what was known in advance: high tariffs are being imposed on Chinese electric vehicles (EVs) from July 5.
The move, announced in early June, is the result of a nine-month investigation that found subsidies are being pumped throughout the supply chain for Chinese-made EVs. battery to the transport services that are engaged to bring the finished products to the coast of Europe.

Tariffs are therefore necessary to offset the unfair advantage that Chinese cars have. Customs duties will come at the already existing rate of 10%.

The decision was announced on Thursday and foresees different customs duties calculated according to the company, the annual turnover and the suspected amount of subsidies received.

Thus, producers will be sanctioned with:


- BYD: 17.4%

- Geely: 19.9%

- SAIC: 37.6%


Other EV manufacturers in China that cooperated in the surveys but were not individually sampled, including Tesla and BMW: 20.8%. Other EV manufacturers in China that did not cooperate: 37.6%.
The introduction of measures will be temporary for now.

The tariffs will remain in place until a final decision is made in four months, which some countries could block if they file a qualified counter-proposal. Italy and France are 100% in favor of tariffs, while Germany is under heavy pressure from its manufacturers who have large investments in China.

Europe's largest carmaker Volkswagen has warned that the negative effects of the tariffs will outweigh any potential benefits, especially for the German car industry.
BMW said the planned tariffs were "the wrong way to go". And that China accounted for about 30% of the sales of German car manufacturers in the first quarter of this year.

Why EU tariffs on products from China

If we look at the growth in numbers of sales of electric vehicles produced in China in the EU, it looks like this:
The number of cars sold in 2017 was 17,809 units, and in 2023 they will reach a figure of 437,554 units.

In addition, you probably did not know that according to the Government climate plan of China, until 2035, the sale and registration of new private vehicles with diesel and gasoline engines will be prohibited.
In order to achieve this plan, Hainan Island in southern China is leading the way, which plans to ban the sale of fossil fuel vehicles by 2030, with the aim of becoming the first province in the country to do so, according to provincial authorities.
"By 2030, there will be a complete ban on the sale of gasoline vehicles throughout the island," the statement said.
Imagine the amount of vehicles that will be sold for a pittance since they cannot be registered! Where will it all end? For now, we know that they go to Central Asia and Africa.

Low value packages from China

According to current EU regulations, packages purchased online from non-EU countries are not subject to customs duties if their value is below 150 euros.
However, Brussels plans to impose tariffs on cheap goods bought from Chinese online stores, including the popular Temu and Shein. Thus, they are trying to stop the increase of goods from China, which the EU says are substandard.
It is claimed that last year 2.3 billion items were imported into the EU under the duty-free threshold of 150 euros.
As the Financial Times writes, the European Commission will propose the abolition of the current threshold of 150 euros below which items can be purchased duty-free. The main platforms targeted are Temu, AliExpress and Shein.

We will see whether someone has thought of collecting even more taxes under the pretext of protecting customers from "poor quality Chinese goods", or is this a deepening of the customs war.
Do you remember the first Chinese stores "Everything for a dollar" where you could buy small goods for prices unknown to us? every commodity has its buyer, especially if it is so popular.

Container transport of goods from China

As if all the mentioned customs duties are not enough, a new problem arises in the supply chain.
If you want to order goods from China today, here is how much it would cost you:
The prices of transporting a large container from China to the Mediterranean could soon reach the same values ​​as during the corona, today it is around $7,783, while transporting the same from the Mediterranean to China today would cost you $664.

Product placement in China - light at the end of the tunnel

For those of us who trade with China, the only good news is the mutual abolition of customs duties on a large number of products The agreement between Serbia and of China, which recently (July 1, 2024) entered into force.
Serbian businessmen who would like to appear on the Chinese market also benefit from the price of transporting containers.
However, having a product and successfully selling it in the Chinese market, please note that these are two very different things.
If you thought you had succeeded when you appeared with your product on the Chinese market, know that you are just at the beginning of your journey.
There is a long road ahead and a struggle for every customer.
Know, You are nobody and nothing there.

You are an unknown brand to the Chinese that means nothing to them.

It is necessary to invest a lot of effort and money in order to position yourself and reach the level of sales you desire.

We are not telling you this by heart.
We have experience with Croatian wines whose quality is unquestionable. However, reaching regular customers is not at all easy.

Your appearance at the appropriate trade fairs is a given. Investing in other forms of advertising is also necessary, and all of that costs money. However, if you position yourself in the Chinese market, you have won for life. It would be the biggest move in your professional career. So go ahead. If you need our help or advice we are here, ask us, we have been through something like that.