China's most senior trade official was touring Europe this week in a last-minute bid to avert the threat of special EU tariffs on electric vehicles from China.

Wang Wentao is on a whirlwind tour of Europe, trying to convince enough nations to vote against the tariff increase, by visiting Germany, Italy, and now Belgium, where the EU is headquartered.

Chinese growth in the clean hydrogen sector has European electrolyzer developers concerned that the market will soon be flooded by cheap technology.

Europe needs China as a “strategic partner” in helping build the bloc’s electric vehicle industry, a top Spanish official said, echoing Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez’s position against EU plans to slap tariffs on Chinese cars.

The future success of the automotive industry in both China and Europe hinges on cooperation between the two economic powerhouses, Wang said at a roundtable in Brussels at which some 30 executives from the Chinese and European EV sectors met to discuss the EU's anti-subsidy case.

The European Commission and China agreed to intensify efforts to avert EU import tariffs on China-built electric vehicles and could re-examine a minimum-price deal previously rejected by the EU, the Commission said on Thursday.

Brussels and Beijing have agreed to take a new look at price undertakings, which could avoid extra tariffs on China-made electric vehicles.

While both sides commit to further talks, European Commission plans to impose duties on Chinese EV imports to counter Beijing car subsidies The top trade officials from the European Union and China failed to reach a deal on ending a bitter dispute over electric vehicles during talks in Brussels on Thursday.

Makiyama, Director of the European Centre for International Political Economy, speaks to CGTN Europe about the talks between Minister of Commerce of China Wang Wentao and Vice-President of the European Commission Valdis Dombrovskis.