Trade
China Probes EU Liquor, Sinking Shares as Trade Spat Worsens
- European distiller stocks Pernod, Remy drop in Paris trading
- China earlier slapped tariffs on Australia wine amid tensions
China is launching an anti-dumping investigation into liquor products like brandy from the European Union, in a relatively modest step after the bloc opened a probe last fall into its electric vehicle subsidies.
The investigation, which Beijing said was prompted by an application from a domestic liquor association, targets French cognac, a niche but lucrative product in China for producers like Pernod Ricard SA and Remy Cointreau SA, and sent their stocks plunging. France was the main backer of Brussels’ probe into Chinese EVs, with French carmakers Renault SA and Stellantis NV particularly exposed to the threat of imports.