China will not impose tariffs on European brandy

BEIJING

China will not impose provisional tariffs on European brandy makers, the government has announced, even though it said it had found evidence of dumping.

Beijing launched an investigation in January into brandy imported from the European Union, months after the EU undertook an investigation into Chinese electric vehicle subsidies.

An organisation representing French Cognac producers expressed alarm over China's dumping claims, saying Cognac houses are "collateral damage in a conflict out of their control."

The Chinese Commerce Ministry said the probe followed a complaint filed in November by China's liquor association on behalf of the domestic brandy industry.

Beijing's investigation found that imported brandy from the European Union had been dumped into China and "the domestic brandy industry was threatened with substantial damage." the ministry said in a statement.

But "no provisional anti-dumping measures will be adopted at this time", the statement added, not ruling out future tariffs.

Shares in French spirits makers Remy Cointreau and Pernod Ricard rallied on Aug. 29 following the announcement.

Cognac's interprofessional bureau warned that should they be imposed, tariffs could go as high as 34.8 percent, and that China accounts for about a quarter of Cognac exports.

China imported more brandy than any other spirit in 2022, with most of it coming from France, according to a report by research group Daxue Consulting.

This month, Beijing launched a probe into EU subsidies of some dairy products imported into China, the day after the bloc said it planned to impose five-year import duties of up to 36 percent on Chinese EVs.