SAIC Motor blames impending EU duties for slumping sales

Chinese state-owned automaker SAIC Motor Corp. said trade actions have affected sales this year as the European Union prepares to hit Chinese electric-vehicle makers with import tariffs.

SAIC’s group sales fell by 37% in July while exports declined 16%, according to the company’s website Wednesday. In a statement posted to Wechat, SAIC blamed “pressures from the EU, US and others” for the fall. Brussels has threatened to impose a 36.3% import tariff on EVs from SAIC, the highest level among the Chinese electric-vehicle manufacturers that were sampled by the EU. The US meanwhile has quadrupled import taxes on Chinese EVs to more than 100%.    

The company said it was working hard to reverse the slump and achieve month-on-month sales growth again. It also hit back at an announcement from the EU on Tuesday that indicated its anti-subsidy investigation against Chinese EV makers is proceeding. The EU probe is against international trade rules, SAIC said in its statement. 

The carmaker is putting its hopes on hybrid models, with deliveries from its MG brand to Europe set to begin shortly. 

“This year, SAIC’s sales in Europe will likely exceed those from last year,” company executive Jia Jianxu was cited as saying. “The passion for hybrid EV models is greater than what we expected.”