MOFCOM-EU Turbine Probe 'May Undermine Mutual Trust In Trade & Econ'

Wires carrying comments from the Chinese Commerce Ministry regarding the new foreign subsidies probe by the European Commission into Chinese-made wind turbines. Commerce Ministry: "The EU's practice is obviously contrary to free trade competition....It will seriously affect global efforts to bring about green transition...What the EU has done may undermine mutual trust in trade and economy."

• The comments from the Commerce Ministry follow on from those by Foreign Ministry spox Mao Ning on 10 April claiming that "The outside world is worried about the rising tendency of protectionism in the EU," calling the measures "discriminatory".
• European Commission Exec VP and Competition Commissioner Margaret Vestager announced the probe at a speech at Princeton University in the US on 9 April. The Commission intends to examine the conditions surrounding the establishment of wind parks in Spain, Greece, France, Bulgaria and Romania.
• The investigation comes under the auspices of the EU's Foreign Subsidies Regulation, which applies EU state aid rules to countries outside the single market in order to preseve the internal market's level playing field. The measure was intended to counter the impact of inventives and state aid involved in the US' Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) package.
• The Commission probe comes just as German Chancellor Olaf Scholz prepares for a high-profile visit to China where he will hold talks with President Xi Jingping. He takes with him a delegation of CEOs from large German firms, indicative of Berlin's continued efforts to court Chinese investment.