European Union Curbing down Chinese Hybrid Imports

On 8-9 October 2026, Wang Wentao, Minister of Commerce of China, and Maroš Šefčovič, Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security of the European Commission, held the second meeting of the EU-China Trade and Investment Consultations (TIC) in Beijing. The EU commission said it has reached a shared understanding to moderate China's exports of hybrids and plug-in hybrids to the EU, opening the prospect of cutting China's exports by more than a half, and to improve access to the Chinese market for a series of EU products through lower MFN tariffs (from car parts to olive oil and footwear, totalling almost EUR 4bn in current export value, bringing at least EUR 225mn in duty savings), and to further facilitate China's export licensing for rare earths and permanent magnets. Bloomberg reported that the EU will cap the import of Chinese hybrid vehicles at 350,000 cars per year, with the safeguard measure taking effect as soon as Dec. 1;