The Ministry of Commerce of the People’s Republic of China has announced an anti-dumping investigation into pork supplies from the European Union. Analysts called this decision the latest step towards a trade war between Europe and China.
“A decision was made to start an anti-dumping investigation against pork meat and by-products imported from EU countries. The ministry will study information on the impact of the supplier’s products, similar products in China, and imported products on the domestic industry,” the ministry said in a statement.
The investigation was a response to similar steps by the EU, writes Bloomberg. Brussels is investigating Chinese subsidies in a number of sectors and has already announced plans to impose tariffs on Chinese electric car imports from July.
According to the agency, China is the EU’s largest foreign pork market. In 2023, the Chinese side bought $1.83 billion worth of pork, with the largest shipments coming from Spain, Denmark and the Netherlands. The total trade volume between the EU and China in 2023 was 282 billion dollars.
In April, the European Commission announced, which is preparing a “wave of trade restrictions” for China. Allegedly, this should increase the importance of the European Union in the world arena.