After taking his neighbour’s electric vehicle (EV) – a model from Shanghai-based MG Motor – for a spin, Spanish taxi driver Jose was convinced.
Following the loss of his high-paying job as an economic analyst during the 2008 financial crisis, he has worked as a cabby while living in Barcelona and London.
In the northern Catalonian city – where Jose returned after the British capital proved too expensive – taxi drivers can earn a decent income, but not enough to keep pace with rising living costs fuelled by inflation in Europe and waves of tourism.
“The quality of Chinese EVs is amazing, not to mention how affordable they are,” he said. Yet just as Jose was set to make a purchase, new European Union tariffs on Chinese car imports arrived.
“This tariff is unfair to consumers here who are facing inflation,” Jose said, frustrated. “Why doesn’t the EU impose a tariff on US cars?” He felt EU decision-makers had overlooked the needs of everyday consumers, especially those with reduced purchasing power in the wake of the pandemic.
