Analysis of the China-EU Trade War in Low-Carbon Energy: A Case Study of Electric Vehicle Disputes

DOI

10.2991/978-2-38476-611-6_58How to use a DOI?

Keywords

China-EU trade war; Low-carbon energy; Electric vehicles; WTO dispute settlement; Countervailing measures

Abstract

As countries worldwide strive to develop green economies, the low-carbon energy sector has gradually become a critical battleground for development and transformation, with trade wars among various actors reflecting its growing importance. The trade disputes between China and the European Union in the electric vehicle sector represent a typical case of trade conflicts in the low-carbon energy field, where the collision between trade rules and financial-economic policies offers profound analytical value and enlightening significance. This paper takes two landmark cases in the China-EU electric vehicle sector—the EU’s imposition of countervailing duties on new battery electric vehicles and China’s export controls on battery raw materials—as entry points. Combining rules such as the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures (SCM Agreement) and the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 (GATT 1994), along with previous typical WTO rulings, this paper conducts an in-depth analysis of the connections between these two cases. Through specific case analysis from both economic impact and legal basis perspectives, it examines the core points of contention and ultimately explores their significance for WTO law and China-EU economic development, discussing how industrial policies can be coordinated with WTO trade rules to promote international trade development.

Copyright

© 2026 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - Runting Liu
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/09/07
TI  - Analysis of the China-EU Trade War in Low-Carbon Energy: A Case Study of Electric Vehicle Disputes
BT  - Proceedings of the 2026 12th International Conference on Digital Humanities and Frontiers in Social Sciences (DHFSS 2026)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 517
EP  - 526
SN  - 2352-5398
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-2-38476-611-6_58
DO  - 10.2991/978-2-38476-611-6_58
ID  - Liu2026
ER  -