European Commission Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis listens during a joint press conference on European industrial strategy in Brussels, Belgium, on May 5, 2021. — AFP picBRUSSELS, May 5 — The EU commission today unveiled new powers to block state-backed companies making unfair inroads into Europe, as the bloc seeks new ways to respond to China’s rise.
The bitterness has forced the EU commission to suspend its efforts to seek ratification of a German-backed EU-China investment deal, which had been billed as a key tool to pave the way towards smoother relations. In the new rules, the bloc’s powerful antitrust authority would investigate state-backed foreign companies seeking to acquire EU businesses with an annual turnover of more than €500 million.
Illegal aid could include interest-free loans, preferential tax treatment or simply direct subsidies.The regulation comes shortly after the Commission, which manages trade policy for the EU’s 27 member states, reached its surprise investment deal with Beijing in late December.