China refuses to curb hybrid exports to the EU. Brussels prepares import quotas, with leaders to decide on October 15–16
The Šefčovič–Wang Wentao talks in Beijing wrap up today with no deal announced. China rejected the EU's proposed cap of about 15% for Chinese hybrids, and the Commission is weighing quotas with steep tariffs above the threshold. That could hit the BYD Seal U DM-i and Chery Tiggo 9, Romania's best-selling plug-in hybrids.
EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič wraps up two days of talks in Beijing today, October 9, with China's Commerce Minister Wang Wentao. Cars are the main issue, and no deal on Chinese hybrids has been announced.
What the EU asked for and what China said
Brussels asked China for a "voluntary export restraint" on hybrids and plug-in hybrids: Chinese brands would cut their share of the EU hybrid market to about 15%, down from more than a third today. According to the Financial Times, as cited by Asia Times and Just Auto, Beijing refused, even before the talks began.
That matters because hybrids have so far escaped the special duties. Since 2024, China-made EVs have paid countervailing duties of 7.8–35.3% on top of the standard 10% import tariff. Hybrids pay only the 10%, so BYD, Chery and others have shifted their exports towards them. According to Eurostat, the EU imported 217,764 plug-in hybrids from China in just the first seven months of 2026, compared with 56,706 in the whole of 2022. In August, one in eight new cars bought in the EU was Chinese, POLITICO notes.
What comes next: quotas, and tariffs above them
Without concessions from China, the European Commission is weighing temporary safeguard measures, which don't require proof of unfair trade practices. The option on the table: a quota of Chinese hybrids enters the EU on today's terms, and anything above it pays steep extra tariffs. The size of the quota and the tariff level haven't been set.
EU leaders will review the outcome of the talks at the Brussels summit on October 15–16 and decide the next step. France and Germany are already pushing for the EU to be able to respond faster to trade imbalances like this one.
What it means for Romania
In Romania, the best-selling plug-in hybrid of 2026 is the BYD Seal U DM-i (1,230 units in nine months), with the Chery Tiggo 9 in third place (655), according to today's APIA data. If quotas with steep tariffs above the threshold are introduced, models like these could get more expensive or harder to find. For now, though, nothing has been decided and current prices are unchanged.
Chinese brands also have a way around it: cars built in Europe aren't imports. BYD is preparing series production at its plant in Hungary, which is due to start in the fourth quarter of 2026, according to Asia Times.
