MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Tariffs on non-folding e-bikes from China revoked

The Secretary of State for Business and Trade has today (Thursday 6 February) accepted a recommendation provided by the TRA to revoke anti-dumping and countervailing measures on imports of Chinese non-folding e-bikes to the UK. Non-folding e-bikes make up around 95% of the UK’s total e-bikes market.

Anti-dumping and countervailing measures on e-bikes imported from China, both folding and non-folding, were transitioned when the UK left the EU. The current anti-dumping measure is an ad valorem tariff of 10.3% to 70.1%, while the current countervailing measure is an ad valorem tariff of 3.9% to 17.2%.

The TRA found that revoking the measures on non-folding e-bikes could mean that consumers, on average, could save around £200 each as a result of being able to purchase cheaper e-bikes.

Alternative option accepted

In its transition reviews, the TRA found that keeping the measures on all imports of Chinese e-bikes would not be in the economic interest of the UK.

Under the UK’s reformed trade remedies regime, if the TRA finds that a measure is not in the economic interest of the UK, it offers the Secretary of State for Business and Trade alternative options to revoking the measures.

These alternative options included only maintaining the measures on folding e-bikes as UK producers are more heavily concentrated in this market. It is this option that the Secretary of State has today accepted.

The measure only applying to folding e-bikes will come into force from 7 February 2025.

Notes to Editors

• The goods investigated were classified as cycles, with pedal assistance, with an auxiliary electric motor.
• The averages used here are estimates representing the average impacts across scenarios modelled.
• The investigations covered the period from 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023. In order to assess injury, the TRA examined the period from April 2019 to March 2023. 
• The TRA is the UK body that investigates whether trade remedy measures are needed to counter unfair import practices and unforeseen surges of imports. 
• Trade remedy investigations were carried out by the EU Commission on the UK’s behalf until the UK left the EU. A number of EU trade remedy measures of interest to UK producers were carried across into UK law when the UK left the EU and the TRA is currently reviewing each one to assess whether it is suitable for UK needs.