World
EU-China talks fail to deliver breakthrough on electric cars dispute
Brussels and Beijing have agreed to take a new look at price undertakings, which could avoid extra tariffs on China-made electric vehicles.
A high-profile attempt between the European Commission and the Chinese government to solve the ongoing dispute around battery electric vehicles (BEVs) failed to deliver a breakthrough, as differences remain entrenched.
Hope, however, is not yet lost as both parties vowed to intensify negotiations. Brussels will offer Chinese carmakers a new chance to set minimum prices for their products.
“Both sides agreed to intensify efforts to find an effective, enforceable and WTO-compatible solution to the BEV case (…) without prejudice to the EU investigation and its deadlines,” Valdis Dombrovskis, the Commission’s executive vice president in charge of trade, said after a “constructive” meeting with Wang Wentao, China’s minister of commerce, on Thursday.
Brussels has accused Beijing of lavishing its BEVs with subsidies to artificially lower their retail price and push European competitors out of the lucrative market. Following a months-long investigation, the Commission found public money spread across the entire supply chain, creating a risk of unsustainable economic losses for the EU industry.
The executive then proposed a raft of additional import tariffs that will apply to BEVs made in China, including those assembled by Western firms in the country. The proposed duties, ranging from 7.8% to 35.3%, according to the brand and their level of cooperation with the investigation, will come on top of the existing 10% rate.
The top-up is supposed to ensure fairer competition and close the price gap between EU and Chinese manufacturers.
Member states need to ratify the tariffs in a vote that should happen sometime before November. If they do so, the rates will become permanent for five years.
From the onset, Beijing has adopted an antagonising position in public, calling the Commission’s inquiry a “naked protectionist act” that “constructed and exaggerated the so-called subsidies.” In a tit-for-tat, it launched several probes against sensitive European exports, such as pork, brandy and dairy.
Behind the scenes, however, Chinese officials have sought to achieve a negotiated solution to the dispute and shield domestic companies from the steep tariffs.
This effort reached a peak on Thursday when Minister Wang met Vice-President Dombrovkis in Brussels.
During the encounter, Dombrovkis defended the Commission’s proposal as being “based strictly on facts and evidence” and solely intended to “compensate” for state subsidies, according to a spokesperson. Dombrovkis censured Beijing’s retaliatory probes into pork, brandy and dairy as “unwarranted” and called for them to be “terminated.”
In a readout, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce reaffirmed its willingness to achieve a solution through “friendly dialogue and consultation” but warned of reprisals to protect domestic companies “if the EU insists on implementing unreasonable tax measures.”
The day before, Wang spoke at a roundtable of BEV producers in Brussels and said negotiations should continue “until the final moment,” that is the vote by member states. “If the consultations fail, the responsibility does not lie with the Chinese side,” he said.
The most notable development of Thursday’s meeting is a mutual commitment to re-evaluating the option of price undertakings, a trade tool that companies can use to increase the price and control the volumes of their exports to avoid anti-subsidy tariffs.
Last week, Brussels rejected the price undertaking offered by Chinese firms subject to the hiked duties, like BYD, Geely and SAIC.
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In parallel to the negotiations, Beijing is stepping up its lobbying efforts to convince certain member states to vote against the tariffs and derail the Commission’s plan.
A qualified majority of 15 countries representing at least 65% of the bloc’s population needs to oppose the duties to prevent them from coming into force. The Commission has never been defeated on tariffs.
Hungary, which plans to attract Chinese investment, is firmly against the measures. Germany, under pressure from its all-important automotive industry, is leaning heavily towards voting them down and is reportedly working the phones to make that happen.
The Chinese lobbying scored a big win last week when Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez publicly called on the Commission to “reconsider” the proposal.
ADVERTISEMENT“We need to reconsider all of us, not only the member states but also the Commission, our position towards this movement,” the Spanish prime minister said in Shanghai, the last stop of his official four-day visit to China.
“As I said before, we don’t need another war, in this case, a trade war. We need to build bridges between the European Union and China.”
The remarks caught Brussels by surprise: until then, Spain was considered supportive of the extra tariffs, having voted in favour during a non-binding consultation in July.
The apparent U-turn was seen as a direct consequence of what Ursula von der Leyen once described as China’s “divide-and-conquer tactics,” given that Sánchez had just sealed a €1-billion deal with a Chinese company to build an electrolyser plant in Spain
ADVERTISEMENTA spokesperson of the German government welcomed Sánchez’s position, saying that “the direction of travel is one that we share.”
This piece has been updated with more reactions.
NEW YORK (AP) — Oil prices rose in early trading Sunday as a standoff between Iran and the U.S. prevented tankers from using the Strait of Hormuz, the Persian Gulf waterway that is crucial to global energy supplies.
The price of U.S. crude oil increased 6.4% to $87.90 per barrel an hour after trading resumed on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. The price of Brent crude, the international standard, climbed 5.8% to $95.64 per barrel.
The market reaction followed more than two days of lifted hopes and dashed expectations involving the strait. Crude prices plunged more than 9% Friday after Iran said it would fully reopen the strait, which it effectively controls, to commercial traffic.
Tehran reversed that decision and fired on several vessels Saturday after President Donald Trump said a U.S. Navy blockade of Iranian ports would remain in effect. On Sunday, Trump said the U.S. attacked and forcibly seized an Iranian-flagged cargo ship that allegedly tried to get around the blockade. Iran’s joint military command vowed to respond.
Sunday’s higher prices wiped out much of the declines seen Friday, signaling renewed doubts about how soon ships will again transport the vast amounts oil the world gets from the Middle East.
The US-Israeli war against Iran, now in its eighth week, has created one of the worst global energy crises in decades. Countries in Asia and Europe that import much of their oil from the Gulf have felt the most impact of halted supplies and production cuts, although rapidly rising gasoline, diesel and jet fuel prices are affecting businesses and consumers worldwide.
Asked when he thought U.S. motorists would again see gas cost less than $3 a gallon on average, Energy Secretary Chris Wright said prices at the pump might not go down that much until next year.
“But prices have likely peaked, and they’ll start going down,” Wright told CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday.
The price of crude oil — the main ingredient in gasoline — has fluctated dramatically since the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on Feb. 28, and as Iran retaliated with airstrikes on other Gulf states. Crude traded at roughly $70 a barrel before the conflict, spiked to more than $119 at times, and previously closed Friday at $82.59 for U.S. oil and $90.38 for Brent.
Industry analysts have repeatedly warned that the longer the strait is closed, the worse prices could get.
A fragile, two-week ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran is set to expire Wednesday, while escalating tensions in the Strait of Hormuz puts the fate of new talks to end the war into question.
Even if a lasting deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz emerges, analysts say it could take months for oil shipments to return to normal levels and for fuel prices to go down. Backed-up tanker traffic, shipowners concerned about another sudden escalation, and energy infrastructure damaged during the war are factors that could impede production and shipment volumes from returning to pre-war levels.
A gallon of regular gas cost an average of nearly $4.05 a gallon in the U.S. on Sunday, according to motor club federation AAA. That’s about 8 cents lower than a week ago, but far higher than $2.98 before the war.
Trump warns Iran it ‘can’t blackmail’ US with Hormuz closure
Fox News reports on heightened tensions in the Middle East as Iran’s Revolutionary Guard reaffirms strict control over the Strait of Hormuz and fires on passing ships. President Donald Trump, speaking from the Oval Office, states the US naval blockade will remain in full force. White House correspondent Alex Hogan provides updates on the escalating diplomatic and military standoff.
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Hundreds of commercial tankers are stranded on both sides of the Strait of Hormuz after Iran shut the critical chokepoint on April 18, halting traffic and leaving crews trapped amid reports of gunfire and “traumatic experiences” on board.
The Strait of Hormuz is considered an international waterway under international law, through which ships have the right of transit passage, according to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
Roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil supply passes through the Strait of Hormuz, making it a critical chokepoint for global energy markets, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
The U.K. Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said Iranian gunboats opened fire on a tanker the same day, while a projectile struck a container vessel, damaging cargo.
STARMER AND MACRON ACCUSED OF ‘PLAYING AT BEING RELEVANT’ WITH STRAIT OF HORMUZ PLAN
U.S. Central Command said Tuesday that “U.S. Navy guided-missile destroyers are among the assets executing a blockade mission impacting Iranian ports.” (CENTCOM)
Audio released by maritime monitoring group TankerTrackers appears to capture the moment a vessel and its crew came under fire while approaching the strait, including a distress call from a crew member.
“Sepah Navy! Motor tanker Sanmar Herald! You gave me clearance to go… you are firing now. Let me turn back!” the crew member can be heard saying in the recording, according to TankerTrackers.
Iranian state media confirmed that shots were fired near vessels to force them to turn back, while the Ministry of External Affairs of the Government of India said the foreign secretary was deeply concerned.
Hapag-Lloyd, the world’s fifth-largest container shipping line, told Fox News Digital that it had activated a crisis team as its crews remain stuck on board vessels in the region.
“We have been working from Friday afternoon until today with the entire crisis team to bring the vessels out — in vain, unfortunately,” said Nils Haupt, senior director of group communications at Hapag-Lloyd AG.
“These events can easily lead to traumatic experiences. There is also a significant risk from sea mines, which has made insuring vessels for passage through the Strait nearly impossible.”
LISA DAFTARI: HORMUZ WHIPLASH PROVES TEHRAN CAN’T HONOR ANY DEAL IT SIGNS
“The crews are well, but they are becoming increasingly impatient and frustrated. It is very unfortunate that we could not leave today,” he added. “Many ships are still stuck in the Persian Gulf.”
“Our six ships are anchored near the port of Dubai, and all crews hope for an improvement in the situation,” Haupt said.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said on April 18 that the strait would remain closed until the U.S. lifts its blockade on Iranian ports, warning ships not to move from anchorage or risk being treated as “enemy” collaborators.
Iran has previously argued that restrictions on its oil exports and shipping amount to “economic warfare,” framing actions in the Strait of Hormuz as a response to foreign pressure on its economy, according to statements from Iranian officials and state media in past incidents.
“Approaching the Strait of Hormuz will be considered cooperation with the enemy, and any violating vessel will be targeted,” the IRGC said in a statement carried by the semi-official Tasnim News Agency.
TRUMP ORDERS A BLOCKADE IN THE STRAIT OF HORMUZ AS TENSIONS WITH IRAN SOAR
Fishing boats dot the sea as cargo ships, in the background, sail through the Arabian Gulf toward the Strait of Hormuz off the United Arab Emirates, Friday, March 27, 2026. (AP Photo)
The United States imposed the blockade on Iranian ports to pressure Tehran to reopen the strait, with U.S. Central Command saying the measures are being enforced “impartially against all vessels.”
Hapag-Lloyd said its vessels have been stuck for weeks following the initial closure after the outbreak of war with Iran on Feb. 28.
“For us, it is critical that our vessels can pass through the strait soon,” Haupt said.
“We offer all crew members unlimited data so they can video call loved ones and access entertainment. Crews are strong, but after weeks on board there is growing monotony and frustration.”
“One crew experienced a fire on board from bomb fragments. Others have seen missiles or drones near their vessels,” he added.
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“They are resilient, but each additional day makes the situation more difficult, more monotonous, and more stressful.”
President Donald Trump said Iran had agreed not to close the strait again but after the closure, Trump called the situation “blackmail” and said the U.S. would not back down.
Shops and schools shut in northern Israel as residents protested a 10-day ceasefire with Lebanon that took effect on April 16, saying “nothing was achieved”. Israeli officials say operations may continue, with forces still deployed inside southern Lebanon.
Published On 19 Apr 2026
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