China retaliates against EU solar panel tariffs

Begins anti-dumping probe into European wines.

The Ministry of Commerce said China has initiated an anti-dumping and anti-subsidy investigation procedure into wines from the European Union. China is the EU's second largest trading partner.

The largest individual wine exporter nation in 2012 was France. It exported 140 million liters to China valued at US$788 million. No total wine export figures for the EU are available.

On June 4, the European Commission imposed anti-dumping duties on imports of Chinese solar panels, claiming the panels were being sold at up to 88% below cost in the European market and that this dumping was harming the European solar panel industry.

The EC will begin levying an initial average tariff of 11.8% starting today, rising to 47.6% on August 6 in the absence of negotiations based on a Chinese commitment to address the problem.

China said it firmly opposes the EU move, and described the tariffs as unfair taxes against China's photovoltaic products exports to Europe.

China's official news agency Xinhua said protectionism on one side is bound to trigger protectionism on the other.