Not the time to spin wheels
China DailyWANG XIAOYING/CHINA DAILY Since the European Commission launched the anti-subsidy investigation into China's electric vehicles in October 2023, how to properly promote the orderly and healthy development of the China-EU EV industry, and how to resolve the potential escalation of trade frictions have been a priority for the two sides. According to the China Automobile Association, in 2023, China's new energy vehicle production and sales reached 9.587 million units and 9.495 million units, a year-on-year increase of 35.8 percent and 37.9 percent, respectively, showing that the overall development of China's EV market is healthy, and the claim that it is relying on the export of products to maintain a balance is untenable. China's NEV exports in 2023 reached 1,584,800 units, of which 438,000 EVs were exported to the EU, accounting for only 27.6 percent of new energy vehicle exports and 4.5 percent of NEV production. Therefore, the so-called reliance on the EU market or foreign exports to absorb production capacity is undoubtedly ignoring the reality of the booming development of China's local EV ecology, distorting and misreading the logic of free trade and the market economy, and creating excuses for politically driven protectionist practices.