Success of China- EU relations lies in building bridges, not walls
Shortly after slapping provisional import duties as much as 28.5 percent on Chinese steel, the European Union ( EU) on Friday decided to launch an anti- dumping investigation into truck and bus tires imported from China. The decision and the timing of the announcement, together with previous trade remedy measures, paint a picture of the EU’s ratcheted-up protectionism tendency.
If history offers any guide, abusing self- indulgent trade remedy measures has never been a silver bullet for disagreement in bilateral trade. Rather, it has been repeatedly proved to be a double- edged blade.
As of 2016, the EU has been China’s largest trading partner in succession for 12 years, while China has ranked as the EU’s second largest trading partner for 13 consecutive years. But their economic relations are sometimes disturbed by the EU’s shrill announcements of anti- dumping measures against imports from China.
Those increasing trade remedy measures are harmful in several ways. Take Friday’s anti- dumping investigation against China’s tires as an example. Those measures often lack sufficient evidence, as the tire industry has been highly-internationalized and similarities among its major markets are quickly growing.
Data from the Chinese side shows that the amount of Chinese tires exported to Europe has remained stable in the last two years, and the slightly lower price is mainly attributed to the price decline of global bulk commodities.
Against this backdrop, the possibility for the EU to follow Washington’s suit and shoot its own foot is high. In February, the US terminated its antidumping investigation against bus and truck tires from China as no damage to US industry was found.
Meanwhile, abusing antidumping measures is a poisoned chalice for the EU, as the lingering illness of its steel industry results from high costs in energy, environmental protection and labor, which weakens EU companies’ competitiveness in the global steel market.
Besides, over- capacity is a global issue and should be attributed to the downturn of the global economy and the declining demand.
In fact, China’s effort to cut steel overcapacity at home has been underestimated.
China plans to reduce steel capacity by 100 million to 150 million tons by 2020. In 2016, more than 65 million tons of steel production capacity was phased out, beating an annual target.
As of the end of May this year, 42.39 million tons of capacity had been slashed, accounting for 84.8 percent of the annual goal.
By slapping anti- dumping duties on and launching investigations against Chinese imports, the EU is scapegoating China for its own flaws and the global market.
In addition, every coin has two sides. Chinese and European tire firms have enjoyed close cooperation, and the EU-initiated probe will not only undermine the interests of Chinese enterprises, but also affect the development of the EU tire industry and the benefits of its own consumers.
As the world’s two largest economies, China and EU should work together closely to firmly maintain and develop an open global economy, and jointly resist the “anti- globalization” trend. That not only benefits the common interests of both sides, but also helps stabilize the international community.
European politicians know well the fact that the success of China- EU relations lies in building bridges, not walls.
The author is a writer with the Xinhua News Agency. The article first appeared on Xinhua. opinion@ globaltimes. com. cn