He is confident that competition will allow European companies to produce better cars
The head of Mercedes-Benz has called on Brussels to cut tariffs on electric vehicles imported from China, while the European Commission is considering raising import duties.
Increasing competition from China will help European automakers produce better cars in the long term, said Mercedes-Benz CEO Ola Källenius, adding that protectionism « is going in the wrong direction. «Do not increase tariffs. I am against it, do the opposite: take the tariffs that we have and lower them»,— he said in an interview with the Financial Times.
Ola Källenius added that Chinese companies are a “natural development of competition, and it needs to be countered with better quality products and better technologies. This is a market economy. Competition — this is good».
Car makers such as Stellantis and Renault, which do not have large businesses in China, have been vocal about the threat from Chinese electric vehicles. However, the Germans account for a significant part of their sales in China: last year sales in the region were more than 30% for Mercedes-Benz and 40% for Volkswagen.
At the same time, Chinese automakers Geely and SAIC, controlled by the Chinese state, own a fifth of the shares of Mercedes-Benz.
Chinese electric cars are currently subject to a 10 percent tariff when imported into Europe. European automakers pay a 15% tax on exports to China, which is one reason why most German models sold in China are made in that country.