Another day, another deeper understanding of the conversations going on behind closed doors as China and the EU approach the negotiating table as they toe the lines of a looming trade war surrounding vehicle imports and anti-subsidy probes of Chinese EVs.
June has been a noteworthy month for global EV market news, as nearly every day, we are delivered a new chapter in an ongoing saga of a looming trade war between China and the European Union.
The dispute between the two global markets began last fall when the EU Commission announced an anti-subsidy probe to determine if Chinese-made EVs imported into Europe were given an unfair advantage due to state-backed funds.
As part of the probe, the EU Commission requested information from several Chinese automakers selling their EVs in Europe, including names like NIO, BYD, XPeng, and state-owned SAIC. Even before the probe results were shared, the EU began threatening tariffs, after the US announced it would quadruple duties on Chinese imports from 25% to 100%.
In retaliation, China threatened tariffs on European imports up to 25%, particularly on gas vehicles from German automakers and other industries. Before sharing its results, the European Commission argued that three Chinese EV automakers, including SAIC, had yet to supply adequate information to the anti-subsidy probe and as a result, would face the highest tariffs (38.1%) on imports.
Across the world, China’s Ministry of Commerce is painting a different picture, calling the requested details of the EU’s anti-subsidy probe of Chinese EVs “unprecedented,” comparing the probe to espionage.
Chinese deem anti-subsidy EV questions spy-like
Per Reuters, China’s Ministry of Commerce has spoken out about the EU’s anti-subsidy probe on EV imports, calling the detailed information demanded from Chinese automakers “unprecedented.”
In a local news conference in China earlier today, Commerce Ministry spokesperson He Yadong said the EU Commission “mandatorily required” Chinese automakers to share advantageous information regarding sourcing raw materials for batteries, manufacturing components, developing sales channels, and their respective pricing.
When asked whether the EU Commission was using the anti-subsidy probe to spy on Chinese EV automakers, Yadong said the following:
The type, scope, and quantity of information collected by the European side was unprecedented and far more than what is required for a countervailing duties investigation.
State media CCTV is pushing a similar “spy” narrative against Brussels following an article posted Wednesday. During today’s news conference, Yadong also said that the EU’s claims that Chinese car companies like SAIC did not fully cooperate are “groundless.”
With Beijing working with European automakers to ease or stop the incoming EV tariffs and the Chinese state media accusing the EU Commission of spying, we appear to have moved beyond brinkmanship and into a potential trade war.
In addition to its own threatened tariffs on EU vehicles imported into China, Beijing has also launched a dumping investigation into EU pork imports, further raising tensions. Meanwhile, Chinese EV automakers who obliged the anti-subsidy EV probe have spoken out against the tariffs but are not wavering on their expansions in the EU markets, no matter what.
Companies like NIO have expressed confidence that they will continue to expand and sell well in Europe, whether they pay duties on each EV import or not.
The EU’s tariffs are expected to take effect on July 4, 2024. This story remains ongoing.
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EcoFlow’s Early Prime Day Sale increases power station discounts up to 65% with bonus savings, free gifts, and more from $169
EcoFlow has launched its Early Prime Day Sale through October 6, which is increasing discounts on power stations up to 65% off, complete with bonus sitewide savings, free gifts at certain pricing thresholds, and even additional bulk savings when buying five or more items. Among the lineup, there is a direct-sale-only offer on the DELTA 2 Portable Power Station bundled with a smart extra battery and two 110W solar panels for $892.05 shipped, after using the sitewide code 25PDFAFF at checkout for an additional 5% savings. This bundle would normally run you $2,646 at full price, and would currently cost you $1,379 buying the power station/battery bundle with two 110W panels separately at Amazon. We’ve seen this kit dropped down to $999 in direct sales before this event, with the $1,754 markdown here dropping things to a new all-time low price. Head below to get the rundown on all the extra ways to save and the full lineup of deals.
As expected, EcoFlow’s Early Prime Day Sale is bringing along plenty of bonus savings promotions while it lasts, including the 5% sitewide bonus discount you can score on any order using the code 25PDFAFF at checkout. There are also three gift with purchase options, with orders reaching $500 getting a free 45W portable solar panel, while orders reaching $1,500 get a free 220W panel and orders of $3,000 or more get a free 400W panel. There’s also the bulk savings with an extra 7% savings being given to orders of five to 10 pieces, an extra 9% savings on orders with 11 to 20 pieces, and an extra 10% savings on bulk orders of 20 or more pieces.
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EcoFlow’s DELTA 2 portable power station is a great well-rounded option for your off-grid living needs, as well as your at-home emergency backup, and with the extra battery included in the bundle, you’ll be starting with a doubled 2,048Wh LiFePO4 capacity that can bump up further to 3,072Wh with one additional battery. You’ll be getting a steady 1,800W of power through the 15 ports present here, surging up to 2,200W when needed. It’s been constructed with an IP68 waterproof rating to handle your outdoor adventures and the weather you may come across, and offers the usual array of in-app smart controls.
Seeing as you’re getting the 220W of solar panels with the bundle, you’re nearly halfway to its max 500W solar input that can put the battery back to full in three to six hours. There’s also the option to recharge from a standard AC outlet to 80% capacity in 50 minutes, or wait for 80 minutes for it to get back to full, with a car port available to plug into your car’s auxiliary cigarette lighter port for on-the-go charging too.
***Note: None of the prices below have had the extra savings factored in and currently represent the starting price listed on the brand’s direct site. Be sure to use the sitewide promo code 25PDFAFF at checkout for the best deals, with the other discounts/gifts automatically applied upon hitting their thresholds.
Equip your travels with Anker’s SOLIX C300X DC 90,000mAh power station and a 60W solar panel at $236 (Today only)
As part of its Deals of the Day, Best Buy is offering the Anker SOLIX C300X DC 90,000mAh Portable Power Station with a 60W solar panel at $235.99 shipped. We’ve been seeing this combo bundle pop up every two to four weeks over the last few months, dropping from its usual $330 price tag, with it coming in $1 lower than the previous one-day sales. You’ll only find its grey variant sitting at higher rates at Amazon (currently $250) and Anker’s direct website (currently $270), with discounts on those alternate colorways having mostly dropped costs to $250 and had fallen as low as $220 in February. For the rest of the day only, you can pick up this solar generator bundle at the third-best price of 2025 and the fourth-lowest overall, which sits $46 above the all-time low that last appeared during Black Friday.
The savings this week are also continuing to a collection of other markdowns. To the same tune as the offers above, these all help you take a more energy-conscious approach to your routine. Winter means you can lock in even better off-season price cuts on electric tools for the lawn while saving on EVs and tons of other gear.
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Did Lucid sell out of Gravity inventory online? Just a day after the inventory was listed online, the Lucid Gravity appears to be sold out.
Lucid Gravity inventory appears sold out online
Lucid said it expected higher output of the Gravity electric SUV in the second half of the year. After listing Gravity inventory on its website on September 19, a few users on X suggested it was due to a lack of demand.
Nick Twork, Lucid’s global communications chief, clarified that the new listing “is not a demand related development.”
Twork explained that “While we have been building Lucid Gravity vehicles to order to satisfy existing customer orders, we’ve produced a small number of configurations based on component availability, ensuring we didn’t lose production slots when parts were constrained.”
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In other words, “you can now skip the wait and drive away in one of our most sought-after models today,” Twork added. In less than 24 hours, Gravity inventory appeared to be sold out online already.
In a quick turn of events, by Sunday night, there were zero Lucid Gravity models listed available through inventory. Through mid-Monday, Lucid’s website still shows “There are no vehicles available at the moment” when searching for Gravity models.
On the company’s Q2 earnings call, interim CEO Marc Winterhoff told investors and analysts that Lucid expected a significant ramp-up in Gravity production after overcoming supply chain issues.
Lucid Gravity Grand Touring (Source: Lucid)
Winterhoff said the company expected the Gravity SUV to account for the majority of production and deliveries in the second half of the year.
“Our daily order rate has nearly doubled,” since introducing Gravity models to its studios while offering test drivers, Winterhoff said.
The Lucid Gravity debuts in Europe (Source: Lucid)
Lucid currently offers the Gravity Grand Touring model, starting at $94,900. Soon, it will add the lower-priced Touring trim, starting from $81,550.
Orders for the Gravity Grand Touring also opened in Europe earlier this month, with deliveries set to begin in early 2026. The Lucid Gravity Touring starts at 116,900 euros ($137,000) in Germany, including VAT. Lucid will introduce the Gravity Touring in Germany, priced from 99,900 euros ($117,000).
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Attendees during a media tour of the Revolution Wind construction hub at the Port of Providence in Providence, Rhode Island, US, on Thursday, June 13, 2024.
Adam Glanzman | Bloomberg | Getty Images
A federal judge on Monday allowed Danish renewable energy company Orsted to resume construction on an offshore wind farm that the Trump administration had blocked.
The judge’s decision is a setback for President Donald Trump’s effort to shut down the nascent offshore wind industry in the U.S.
The Interior Department had ordered Orsted on Aug. 22 to halt construction on Revolution Wind off the coast of Rhode Island and Connecticut. The project is fully permited and 80% complete. It would provide power for more than 350,000 homes.
Orsted and its partner Skyborn had asked the United States District Court for the District of Columbia to halt Interior’s stop-work order, arguing that it was aribtrary, capricious, unlawful and “issued in bad faith.”
While the judge granted the injuction request, a full opinion has yet to be filed.
Trump has targeted the wind power industry since his first day in office, when he banned new leases for offshore wind farms. But the industry had hoped that fully permitted wind projects, particularly those that are already under construciton, would be allowed to proceed.
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said earlier this month that he is “taking a deep look” at five offshore wind projects in the U.S. that are under construction. Burgum made clear that Trump wants to shut down the offshore wind industry.
“Under this administration, there is not a future for offshore wind because it is too expensive and not reliable enough,” Burgum told an audience at the Gastech conference in Milan, Italy on Sept. 11.