Clément Beaune, head of France's Planning Council, proposes 30 percent tariffs on all Chinese imports to shield European industry. In a Handelsblatt interview, the close confidant of President Emmanuel Macron warns of a gigantic Chinese industrial threat, hitting Germany hardest amid a fresh energy crisis.
Berlin. Clément Beaune, head of France's Planning Council and close confidant of President Emmanuel Macron, views Europe's economy as facing a double threat. A new energy crisis is making oil and gas dependency especially costly. At the same time, an industrial shock is rolling in from China.
"The Chinese threat to our industry and economic power is gigantic, and it will persist," Beaune said in the Handelsblatt interview. The People's Republic is not only cheaper but technologically equivalent or superior in many sectors. Germany is "the most affected country."
Beaune's response: Europe needs more investments, bureaucracy reduction, and protection against Chinese imports—including tariffs of up to 30 percent on all Chinese imports. France can learn from Germany on free trade agreements. The proposals are highly controversial in Berlin.
