Paris: Days after President Xi Jinping's first European visit in five years aimed at mending economic ties with the West, French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire criticized Beijing for saturating global and European markets with cheap Chinese goods.

In a May 27 interview with Bloomberg Television, Le Maire expressed concerns about China's economic model, which he claimed threatens not only the European Union (EU) and the United States but the global economy. He highlighted the proliferation of inexpensive Chinese industrial devices as a major issue.

This is not Le Maire's first critical stance on China. During the G7 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors' meeting in Stresa, Italy, from May 23-25, he urged member countries to strengthen information exchange and jointly assess China's industrial practices. According to the Japan Times, Le Maire emphasized the EU's and France's determination to address these challenges.

G7 Finance Ministers supported Le Maire's call for a unified response against China’s "non-market policies and practices," which they argued undermine workers, industries, and economic resilience in G7 countries. This collective stance underscores the widespread frustration in the West over China's market flooding with low-cost products such as wood flooring, wind turbines, solar panels, electric vehicles, and steel.

The European Commission recently launched an anti-dumping investigation into Chinese flat-rolled iron products following a complaint from the European steel association, EUROFER. The complaint alleged that Chinese mills have been inundating the EU market with cheap tinplate for the past four years, forcing EU producers to slash prices.

Additionally, the European Commission is nearing the completion of its investigation into subsidies for Chinese-manufactured electric vehicles. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has previously highlighted that Chinese electric cars, heavily subsidized by the state, are distorting global markets. A report by the European Federation for Transport and Environment indicated that 19.5% of battery-powered electric vehicles sold in the EU in 2023 were from China, a figure expected to rise above 25% in 2024.

The EU has also initiated probes into imports of various Chinese products, including clean technology, medical devices, and wind turbines. Experts assert that these measures are crucial to combating China's dumping practices, which unfairly undercut European companies and threaten local industries.

According to the United Nations Industrial Development Organization, China produces a third of the world’s manufactured goods, surpassing the combined output of the US, Germany, Japan, and South Korea. Despite a trade deficit of nearly 300 billion euros with China last year, the EU is unwilling to maintain the current trade dynamics.

Le Maire’s remarks reflect the growing unease in Europe regarding China's trade and investment practices. The EU is also concerned about Chinese companies circumventing tariffs by processing goods in countries like Vietnam, Malaysia, and Mexico before exporting them to Europe and the US.

In response to China's continued dumping practices, the US is also preparing to tighten trade restrictions. President Joe Biden has signaled intentions to reimpose tariffs on numerous Chinese goods to protect American jobs and businesses. On April 17, Biden asked the US Trade Representative to consider tripling tariffs on Chinese steel and aluminum, continuing the tariff policies initiated under the Trump administration.

China, however, defends its trade practices, accusing critics of promoting protectionism. Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Lin Jian argued that claims of China’s overcapacity harming global markets are unfounded and disrupt industrial and supply chains.

As global trade tensions with China escalate, both the EU and the US are taking decisive steps to address what they perceive as unfair trade practices, seeking to protect their economies from the impact of China's market strategies.