SHANGHAI (Reuters) – Chinese companies plan to ask authorities to open an “anti-subsidy” investigation into imports of some dairy products from the European Union, the state-backed Global Times newspaper reported on Saturday, citing an unidentified “business insider”.
The report, carried in a post on X, gave no other details.
The EU exported 1.7 billion euros ($1.84 billion) in dairy products to China in 2023, down from 2 billion in 2022, according to data from the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development which cited Eurostat.
The report comes as trade tensions between the EU and China intensify, with the EU conducting investigations into various imports from China to protect home-grown manufacturers.
In January, China opened an investigation into brandy imported from the EU.
In May, the EU launched an investigation into flat-rolled products of iron or steel plated or coated with tin from China. The European Commission is also investigating China-made electric vehicles, which is expected to lead to additional duties.
Chinese firms were also seeking a probe into EU pork imports, the Global Times reported in May.
($1 = 0.9259 euros)
(Reporting by Andrew Silver; Editing by Kim Coghill and Clelia Oziel)
