The EU is to impose duties from today on Chinese electric bicycles in a move to curb cheap imports that European producers have said are flooding the market.
The duties are the latest in a series of EU measures against Chinese exports ranging from solar panels to steel that have sparked strong words from Beijing.
The EU shares US concerns about technology transfers and state subsidies, but has called on countries to avoid a trade war.
Earlier this month, the US and China slapped tariffs on US$34 billion of each other’s imports.
The European Commission, which is carrying out an investigation on behalf of the 28 EU member states, decided that tariffs of between 27.5 and 83.6 percent should apply for all e-bikes from China, the Official Journal of the European Union said.
Taiwan’s Giant Manufacturing Co Ltd (巨大機械), one of the world’s largest bicycle makers that has factories in China and the Netherlands, was subject to the lower rate of 27.5 percent.
The investigation is expected to run until January next year, when definitive duties typically lasting five years could apply.
The commission found that Chinese exports of e-bikes to the EU more than tripled from 2014 to a 12-month period ending in September last year. Their market share rose to 35 percent, while their average prices fell by 11 percent.
The European Bicycle Manufacturers Association, which filed the case, applauded the decision, saying that the duties would give European e-bike makers a chance to recover lost sales.
EU producers include the Netherlands’ Accell Group NV and Royal Dutch Gazelle, Romania’s Eurosport DHS SA and Germany’s Derby Cycle Holding GmbH.
Imports of Chinese e-bikes have been subject to registration since early May, meaning that the duties could be backdated until then.
There is also a parallel EU investigation into whether Chinese e-bike exporters have benefited from excessive state subsidies.
The US dollar was trading at NT$29.7 at 10am today on the Taipei Foreign Exchange, as the New Taiwan dollar gained NT$1.364 from the previous close last week. The NT dollar continued to rise today, after surging 3.07 percent on Friday. After opening at NT$30.91, the NT dollar gained more than NT$1 in just 15 minutes, briefly passing the NT$30 mark. Before the US Department of the Treasury's semi-annual currency report came out, expectations that the NT dollar would keep rising were already building. The NT dollar on Friday closed at NT$31.064, up by NT$0.953 — a 3.07 percent single-day gain. Today,
‘SHORT TERM’: The local currency would likely remain strong in the near term, driven by anticipated US trade pressure, capital inflows and expectations of a US Fed rate cut The US dollar is expected to fall below NT$30 in the near term, as traders anticipate increased pressure from Washington for Taiwan to allow the New Taiwan dollar to appreciate, Cathay United Bank (國泰世華銀行) chief economist Lin Chi-chao (林啟超) said. Following a sharp drop in the greenback against the NT dollar on Friday, Lin told the Central News Agency that the local currency is likely to remain strong in the short term, driven in part by market psychology surrounding anticipated US policy pressure. On Friday, the US dollar fell NT$0.953, or 3.07 percent, closing at NT$31.064 — its lowest level since Jan.
The New Taiwan dollar and Taiwanese stocks surged on signs that trade tensions between the world’s top two economies might start easing and as US tech earnings boosted the outlook of the nation’s semiconductor exports. The NT dollar strengthened as much as 3.8 percent versus the US dollar to 30.815, the biggest intraday gain since January 2011, closing at NT$31.064. The benchmark TAIEX jumped 2.73 percent to outperform the region’s equity gauges. Outlook for global trade improved after China said it is assessing possible trade talks with the US, providing a boost for the nation’s currency and shares. As the NT dollar
PRESSURE EXPECTED: The appreciation of the NT dollar reflected expectations that Washington would press Taiwan to boost its currency against the US dollar, dealers said Taiwan’s export-oriented semiconductor and auto part manufacturers are expecting their margins to be affected by large foreign exchange losses as the New Taiwan dollar continued to appreciate sharply against the US dollar yesterday. Among major semiconductor manufacturers, ASE Technology Holding Co (日月光), the world’s largest integrated circuit (IC) packaging and testing services provider, said that whenever the NT dollar rises NT$1 against the greenback, its gross margin is cut by about 1.5 percent. The NT dollar traded as strong as NT$29.59 per US dollar before trimming gains to close NT$0.919, or 2.96 percent, higher at NT$30.145 yesterday in Taipei trading
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