MOFCOM's newly appointed spokesperson He Yongqian Photo: Chu Daye/GT

The Chinese competent authority will make the final ruling on the case in the near future in accordance with Chinese laws and regulations and WTO rules, a spokesperson of China's Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) said on Thursday. 
 
He Yongqian, the MOFCOM spokesperson, made the remarks at a press conference on Thursday in response to a media inquiry on whether China will further extend the deadline of an anti-dumping probe on imported brandy from the EU, or impose permanent tariff duties as high as 39 percent ahead of a leaders' summit between China and the EU.  

The latest remarks by the MOFCOM spokesperson show the seriousness of the position taken by the Chinese side on the probe, which is carried out in alignment with Chinese laws and WTO rules, and also suggested that the intense contact and dialogue held by the two sides in recent months have had some results, Zhang Jian, a vice president of the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, told the Global Times on Thursday. 

"It also entailed the possibility of the two sides resolving the issue over EU brandy before the summit, now that the probe is in its concluding phase," Zhang said.

The MOFCOM announced in April that it will further extend the anti-dumping investigation into imported brandy from the EU to July 5, 2025.

The investigation was initially launched on January 5, 2024, and the deadline was initially extended to April 5, 2025. Due to the complexity of the case, and in accordance with relevant laws and regulations, the deadline was later extended to July 5, 2025, according to the MOFCOM.

Following "focused, candid, and in-depth" discussions between Chinese commerce and EU trade chiefs in early June in Paris on urgent and important issues, including the EU's anti-subsidy probe into Chinese electric vehicles (EVs), China's anti-dumping probe into EU brandy, and export controls, China's MOFCOM said in a statement on June 7 that the EV price commitment negotiations between China and the EU have entered the final stage, while Chinese authorities were reviewing the EU brandy price commitment text and were scheduled to make a final ruling before July 5.

The meeting was first reported by the Global Times in late May, citing a source familiar with the matter.

The remarks by He also came as China's top diplomat is visiting Europe. 

At the 13th round of China-EU High-level Strategic Dialogue held on Wednesday (local time) at the EU headquarters in Brussels, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, called on Europe to adopt a truly objective and rational understanding of China and follow a more positive and pragmatic policy.

At a routine press conference on Thursday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said China stands ready to work with the EU to see each other as partners, deepen economic and trade cooperation, open wider to each other, properly handle differences through consultation, and achieve win-win results.

In the turbulent and rapidly changing international landscape, as two major players, markets and civilizations in the world, China and the EU need to uphold multilateralism and free trade, safeguard international rules and order, promote the peaceful settlement of international disputes, jointly address climate change and other global challenges, and serve as the "anchor of stability" for the world, Mao said.