Punitive EU solar duties will badly hurt trade ties

China asks European Union to use dialogue and negotiations to resolve frictions.

China’s Ministry of Commerce said the EU's proposed levying of punitive duties on Chinese solar panels would severely impair bilateral trade ties.

It noted that China's position of using dialogue and negotiations to resolve the frictions hasn't changed. It urged the EU to consider the larger picture of bilateral ties and make efforts to handle the issue properly.

The ministry said China and the EU are important trade partners for each other, and it is in the interests of both sides to maintain mutually beneficial cooperation in economics and trade.

Imposing provisional duties on imports of Chinese solar panels would harm the interests of both sides, and a trade war will only create a lose-lose situation for China and the EU.

The punitive measures still have to be reviewed by EU member states and be published in the EU's official journal before going into effect.

The Alliance for Affordable Solar Energy, a coalition of more than 450 European photovoltaic companies, called the proposed punitive tariffs "extremely disturbing," saying they would cause "irreversible damage" to Europe's entire photovoltaic value chain.