Chinese Automakers’ Answer to E.U. Tariffs: Build in Europe
MELISSA EDDY中国汽车制造商比亚迪正在与19个国家的经销商合作，推出受欢迎的电动和混合动力车型，从而提升在欧洲的形象。Felix Schmitt for The New York TimesThe leafy city of Szeged, Hungary, boasting wide avenues, a respected university and ornate, pale yellow villas near the country’s border with Serbia, looks more like a relic of the Hapsburg empire than the location of Europe’s automotive future.绿树成荫的匈牙利城市塞格德拥有宽阔的大道、一所受人尊敬的大学，毗邻匈牙利与塞尔维亚边境的华丽淡黄色别墅，这里看起来更像是哈布斯堡帝国的遗迹，而不是欧洲汽车未来的所在地。But at a 740-acre construction site there, excavators have already begun preparing for what will be the first European assembly plant of China’s leading automaker, BYD. Large concrete pipes and stacks of metal sheets stand ready, with the cornerstone to be set this fall.但在那里一块占地约300公顷的建筑工地上，挖掘机已经开始为中国领先的汽车制造商比亚迪在欧洲的第一家装配厂做准备。大型混凝土管道和成堆的金属板已经准备就绪，今年秋天将会奠基。Timing is crucial. The European Union is poised to decide by Oct. 30 whether to increase tariffs on electric vehicles entering the bloc from China. The duties, which come on top of an existing 10 percent tariff, would range from 9 to 35.3 percent and remain in effect for five years. They are significantly lower than the 100 percent tariffs imposed by the United States and Canada, but they come as Chinese automakers are eager to break into the European market.时机至关重要。欧盟准备在10月30日之前决定是否提高从中国进入欧盟的电动汽车的关税。这些关税在现有10%的关税基础上加征，税率从9%至35.3%之间不等，有效期为五年。这远低于美国和加拿大征收的100%的关税，但在它们出台之际，中国汽车制造商正急于打入欧洲市场。BYD has already been seeking to raise its profile in Europe, working with distributors across 19 countries to offer electric and hybrid models and sponsoring the European Championship soccer tournament this summer.比亚迪一直寻求提高在欧洲的知名度，它与19个国家的经销商合作，提供电动和混合动力车型，并赞助了今年夏天的欧洲足球锦标赛。“They have very ambitious plans,” Sandor Nagy, a deputy mayor responsible for urban development in Szeged, said of BYD’s plant, which the company plans to bring online next year. “And they obviously have a very strong incentive with the tariffs.”“他们有非常雄心勃勃的计划，”负责塞格德城市发展的副市长纳吉·桑德尔在谈到计划于明年投产的比亚迪工厂时说。“关税显然是很强的动机。”Other Chinese automakers, eager to convince Europeans that their cars are fun to drive and more affordable than models made by European companies, are also looking for ways to avoid the tariffs.其他中国汽车制造商也在寻找避免关税的方法，急于让欧洲人相信，它们的汽车开起来很棒，而且比欧洲公司生产的车型更实惠。
布达佩斯的比亚迪电动汽车。这家汽车制造商计划于2025年在匈牙利塞格德的一家新工厂开始生产。Tamas Paczai for The New York Times
Chery, a Chinese car manufacturer, announced in April that it would begin producing electric vehicles in Barcelona, in partnership with Ebro EV Motors. Stellantis, whose European brands include Peugeot, Fiat and Opel, announced in May that it was entering into a partnership with Leapmotor of China, with production of electric vehicles in Europe to begin this fall.中国汽车制造商奇瑞今年4月宣布，将与埃布罗电动汽车公司合作，在巴塞罗那开始生产电动汽车。斯特兰蒂斯旗下的欧洲品牌包括标致、菲亚特和欧宝。该公司今年5月宣布，将与中国的零跑汽车建立合作关系，于今年秋天开始在欧洲生产电动汽车。Zhejiang Geely Holding, which acquired the Swedish automaker Volvo Cars in 2010, is also scouting for a possible production site in Europe. It owns Polestar, which is based in Sweden, but produces its vehicles in China. Earlier this year, the company began making an S.U.V. at a plant in South Carolina, which will also be used to supply the European market.2010年收购瑞典汽车制造商沃尔沃汽车的浙江吉利控股集团也在欧洲寻找可能的生产基地。该公司旗下的极星公司总部位于瑞典，但在中国生产。今年早些时候，该公司开始在南卡罗来纳州的一家工厂生产SUV，该工厂也将用于供应欧洲市场。The moves into Europe come as deliberations about the tariffs head into their final weeks. Wang Wentao, China’s minister of commerce, is touring European capitals ahead of a meeting on Thursday in Brussels with Valdis Dombrovskis, the E.U. commissioner for trade.这些企业进入欧洲之际，有关关税的审议已进入最后几周。中国商务部长王文涛正在欧洲各国首都访问，周四将在布鲁塞尔与欧盟贸易专员瓦尔季斯·东布罗夫斯基斯会面。Analysts believe that shifting production closer to the market will benefit both sides: The European auto industry would gain jobs and access to cutting-edge technology, while Chinese producers would save on tariffs and shipping costs.分析人士认为，将生产转移到离市场更近的地方对双方都有利：欧洲汽车行业将获得就业机会，并获得尖端技术，中国制造商将节省关税和运输成本。Chinese brands accounted for 3.7 percent of all electric vehicles sold in Europe in 2023, compared with 0.4 percent of market share four years earlier. That number is expected to climb in the next five years.到2023年，中国品牌占欧洲电动汽车销量的3.7%，而四年前的市场份额为0.4%。预计未来五年这一数字还将攀升。
In July, Turkey announced that BYD would build an assembly plant there, with production of battery-powered and hybrid cars to begin in 2026. Turkey is not an E.U. member, but trade agreements mean that cars made there would not be subject to the tariffs.今年7月，土耳其宣布比亚迪将在该国建立一家组装厂，并于2026年开始生产电池驱动和混合动力汽车。土耳其不是欧盟成员国，但贸易协定意味着在那里生产的汽车不受关税影响。In Szeged, BYD is aiming to ramp up production over the next few years, creating thousands of new jobs. The speed is part of a push to get its cars onto the European market, despite the recent slump in demand.在塞格德，比亚迪的目标是在未来几年内提高产量，创造数以千计的新就业岗位。尽管最近需求下滑，但这样的速度是比亚迪进入欧洲市场努力的一部分。Already the company has been working to make itself known across Europe, setting up relationships with dealers. At the European soccer championship in Germany, BYD displayed its cars at fan fairs in 10 different cities and its logo flashed on the sideboards throughout the matches.该公司已经努力在欧洲打响知名度，与经销商建立合作关系。在德国举行的欧洲足球锦标赛上，比亚迪在10个不同城市的球迷展销会上展示了自己的汽车，在整个比赛过程中，比亚迪的标志一直在场边广告牌上闪现。Germany is Europe’s largest economy and its largest market for cars. But it also holds a special prestige for China. Germany’s top automakers — Volkswagen, BMW and Mercedes-Benz — helped to develop the auto industry there through joint ventures formed with Chinese companies in the early 1990s.德国是欧洲最大的经济体，也是欧洲最大的汽车市场。但在中国，它也具有特殊的声望。德国顶级汽车制造商——大众、宝马和梅赛德斯-奔驰——在上世纪90年代初通过与中国公司成立合资企业，帮助中国发展了汽车工业。But German consumers are traditionally conservative and deeply loyal to their brands. Berlin’s decision to abruptly cut subsidies toward the purchase of electric vehicles led to a nearly 37 percent drop in new registrations in the year through July, compared with the same time in the previous year.但德国消费者传统上比较保守，对自己的品牌忠诚度很高。柏林突然决定削减对购买电动汽车的补贴，导致截至今年7月的一年里新车注册数量与去年同期相比下降了近37%。That has not stopped Chinese automakers from trying to gain a toehold. Last week, several Chinese car manufacturers displayed their latest models at a trade fair in Frankfurt that is normally focused on automotive suppliers.这并没有阻止中国汽车制造商试图获得立足点。上周，几家中国汽车制造商在法兰克福一个通常以车企为主的展会上展示了他们的最新车型。
上周在法兰克福车展上，参观者在中国汽车制造商吉利的展台观看展示。Felix Schmitt for The New York Times
“Even if some in Europe turn against us, we will never turn against the European market,” Victor Yang, senior vice president at Geely, told reporters at the fair.“即使欧洲的一些人反对我们，我们也永远不会反对欧洲市场，”吉利高级副总裁杨学良在展会上告诉记者。The interest in Europe is not just from automakers. More Chinese suppliers have arrived over the past several years to be closer to the assembly plants that purchase their products, said Maarten Otte, the head of investor relations for Central and Eastern Europe at CTP, a logistics and industrial real estate firm.对欧洲感兴趣的不仅仅是汽车制造商。物流和工业地产公司CTP的中欧和东欧投资者关系主管马丁·奥特说，过去几年来，越来越多的中国供应商来到这里，以便更接近采购其产品的组装厂。Automakers such as BMW that rely on parts made by Chinese companies are concerned about the costs and the risks associated with shipping goods overseas and are looking to make their supply chains more affordable and secure, he said.他说，宝马等依赖中国企业生产零部件的汽车制造商担心将货物运往海外的成本和风险，希望让自己的供应链更经济、更安全。“So they say, ‘If you want to produce for our European market, you need to be in Europe,’” Mr. Otte said. A combination of skilled workers available at lower wages and the availability of undeveloped land has made countries in Central and Eastern Europe especially interesting, he said.“所以他们说，‘如果你想为我们的欧洲市场生产产品，你就得在欧洲，’”奥特说。他表示，工资较低的熟练工人和未开发的土地相结合，使中欧和东欧国家特别有吸引力。The Hungarian government of Viktor Orban has pledged incentives to support the project but has not yet disclosed the amount. BYD did not respond to a request for comment.欧尔班·维克托领导的匈牙利政府已承诺采取激励措施支持该项目，但尚未披露具体金额。比亚迪没有回应置评请求。Some analysts have drawn parallels between the situation playing out in Europe and Washington’s approach to Toyota and Honda, Japanese brands that invested heavily in production in the United States in the 1980s.一些分析人士认为，欧洲目前的形势与美国政府对待丰田和本田的做法类似。上世纪80年代，这两个日本品牌在美国大举投资设厂。But despite attempts to shift the relationship from cooperation to competition, China remains Europe’s second-largest trading partner, after the United States, with bilateral trade worth 739 billion euros, or $814 billion, in 2023.但是，尽管存在将合作关系转变为竞争关系的种种尝试，中国仍然是欧洲第二大贸易伙伴，仅次于美国，2023年双边贸易额为7390亿欧元（约合8140亿美元）。
中国电动汽车制造商在法兰克福车展上表现强劲。Felix Schmitt for The New York Times
“All of these things combined produce an overall political situation where the national security-driven U.S. approach is certainly not desirable in Europe,” said Mr. Kirkegaard of the Peterson Institute.彼得森国际经济研究所的柯克加德说，“所有这些因素加在一起，形成了一种整体的政治局面——以国家安全为导向的美国做法，在欧洲肯定是不可取的。”This is especially true in Germany, where automakers are heavily invested in China and, fearful of endangering their interests there, oppose the tariffs.在德国尤其如此，德国的汽车制造商在中国有大量投资，由于担心危及在中国的利益，他们反对征收关税。And during a visit to China last week, Pedro Sánchez, the prime minister of Spain — Europe’s second-largest car manufacturer — urged Brussels to reconsider its position, arguing that pursuing the tariffs would be harmful.上周访问中国期间，欧洲第二大汽车生产国西班牙首相佩德罗·桑切斯敦促布鲁塞尔重新考虑其立场，称征收关税将是有害的。“We don’t need another war, in this case a trade war,” Mr. Sánchez said. “I think we need to build bridges between the European Union and China.”“我们不需要另一场战争，我是说贸易战，”桑切斯说。“我认为我们需要在欧盟和中国之间架起桥梁。”
