Beijing International Automotive Exhibition, or Auto China 2024, in Beijing

BMW's CEO on Wednesday warned against imposing EU import duties on electric vehicles from Chinese automakers, saying it could upend the bloc's Green Deal industrial plan and harm German automakers which import cars made in China.

The European Commission, which oversees trade policy in the 27-nation European Union, launched an investigation in October into whether fully-electric cars manufactured in China were receiving distortive subsidies and warranted extra tariffs.

"You could very quickly shoot yourself in the foot," CEO Oliver Zipse told reporters after the German premium automaker reported quarterly results.

BMW imports Chinese-made Mini EVs and the iX3 into Europe.

Like its German rivals Volkswagen and Mercedes-Benz, BMW is heavily reliant on revenues from its Chinese business.

China is BMW's second-largest market after Europe, accounting for nearly 32% of sales in the first quarter.

"We don't think that our industry needs protection," Zipse told analysts on Wednesday, adding that operating on a global basis gives major automakers an industrial advantage. "You can easily endanger that advantage by introducing import tariffs."

In March, the Commission started customs registration of Chinese EV imports, meaning they could be hit by tariffs from that point if the trade investigation concludes they are receiving unfair subsidies.

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The probe is due to conclude by November, but the EU could impose provisional duties in July. Brussels should publish a summary of proposed provisional duties by June 5 and these duties would be imposed by July 4.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in Berlin on Wednesday that Europe needed to take steps to prevent China from flooding the bloc's market with subsidised electric vehicles.

French President Emmanuel Macron and Von der Leyen urged Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday to ensure

more balanced trade with Europe.

Zipse told analysts that BMW and other automakers have "bilateral dependencies not only on the final product, but on the component side and raw material side."

Imposing duties could backfire as new EU CO2 emission standards that will require more EVs - that are reliant on Chinese battery materials - kick in next year.

"There will be no single car in the EU without components from China," Zipse said.

He said that imposing tariffs would undo the EU's industrial plan to ensure the bloc is a frontrunner in cutting carbon emissions and developing the technology required to do so.

"There is no Green Deal in Europe without resources from China," Zipse said.

BMW says EU probe into China EV subsidies against free trade

The chief executive of German luxury carmaker BMW on Wednesday warned the European Union's investigation into Chinese electric car subsidies runs counter to free trade.

The EU launched the inquiry last year, fearing that Chinese subsidies are a threat to Europe's own vast automotive industry.

The move enraged Beijing, sparking fears of a trade war between the bloc and the world's second-biggest economy.

Oliver Zipse -- CEO of BMW, which has major investments in China, the world's biggest car market -- said that the Munich-based group "always strives for free trade".

"What we are experiencing today with the anti-subsidy investigation against China is exactly the opposite of what we expect," he said during a call after the group reported falling profits in the first quarter.

It was unlikely BMW's warnings would stop the EU imposing additional tariffs on Chinese car manufacturers, he said, but added that he hoped any such step would be temporary.

"I would warn against doing something like that permanently -- it would do much more damage to German industry," he said.

He pointed out many Chinese imports to Europe are made by non-Chinese manufacturers with operations in the country, including German companies.

"You see how quickly you can shoot yourself in the foot," he said.

According to NGO Transport & Environment, nearly 20 percent of all electric cars sold across the EU last year were built in China -- but more than half of those were made by Western carmakers.

BMW has a major production base in Shenyang, where it manufactures cars through a joint venture.

Zipse's comments came as the BMW group, which also makes Mini and Rolls-Royce cars, reported first-quarter net profit dropped 19 percent year-on-year to 2.95 billion euros ($3.17 billion) due to higher costs.

Sales slipped 0.6 percent to 36.6 billion euros.

In China the group sold almost 183,000 BMW brand vehicles, down 4.1 percent from a year earlier.

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Germany's auto giants in particular have invested heavily in China in recent decades. They were already facing problems due to fierce local competition, and the fallout from the EU probe amounts to an extra headache.

If the EU concludes there are unfair practices, it could impose tariffs on Chinese car manufacturers above the standard 10 percent EU rate, but Brussels could also decide to do nothing.

The probe is one of several state aid investigations directed at China by the bloc in recent times, with the EU accusing Beijing of flooding Europe with subsidised goods.