Chinese goods dumping started before tariffs

Weak domestic demand rather than US tariffs is the main reason China is dumping surplus product on European markets at rock-bottom prices at the expense of domestic producers, a European Central Bank study argued today. Pressure has been growing on the European Union to act on surging imports from China as US tariffs force Beijing to find new markets for products it now struggles to sell. “Escalating trade tensions between the US and China might result in a further diversion of Chinese exports to Europe,” the ECB argued in an Economic Bulletin article. “However, the rise in China’s exports to…