Tariff hike fears drive Chinese EV sales

The surge in Chinese electric vehicle sales across Europe in June was mainly driven by looming tariff threats, newly released data reveal.

According to analytics company Dataforce, Chinese carmakers captured a record 11 percent of the European EV market in June. The figures, which include the United Kingdom, show that about 23,000 EVs were registered in June, marking a 72 percent increase from the previous month as consumers raced to beat anticipated price hikes within the European Union.

In early July, the EU announced plans to impose extra duties of up to 37.6 percent on Chinese EV imports because of what it called "unfair" state subsidies benefiting manufacturers in a keenly contested market.