Recently, BMW is negotiating with the European Commission to seek EU tariff exemptions for electric MINI models produced in China through a minimum price mechanism.According to people familiar with the matter, the core of this negotiation between BMW and the EU is the minimum import price plan. If the plan is reached, it will replace the current EU tariffs on Chinese-made BMW electric MINI models.
According to reports, the negotiations have entered an in-depth stage, and both the EU and BMW are "willing to reach a solution."
It is worth noting that this negotiation is not an isolated incident.
Previously, the EU had reached an agreement with the Volkswagen Group in early February. After several months of negotiations,Volkswagen's Seat/CUPRA brand's pure electric SUV coupe Tavascan successfully obtained tariff exemptions, becoming the first model to reach such an agreement.
It is reported that after the EU completed its countervailing investigation on China's electric vehicles at the end of October 2024, it imposed additional tariffs on related models. Among them, the electric MINI Cooper and electric MINI Aceman models produced by BMW in China have an applicable tariff rate of 20.7%.
Regarding this negotiation, there is no official response from both BMW and the EU.
The market generally expects that as Volkswagen and BMW start negotiation processes with the EU, more car companies may reach similar tariff exemption agreements in the future. Chinese car companies are also actively exploring tariff exemption channels for electric vehicles exported to the EU.
