The European Commission notified car makers that it would apply additional duties of up to 38.1 per cent on imported Chinese electric vehicles from July, a move likely to draw possible retaliation from China.
China's commerce ministry said it would closely monitor the development and resolutely take all necessary measures to safeguard the legitimate rights of Chinese companies.
The EU provisional duties are set to apply by July 4, with the anti-subsidy investigation set to continue until November 2, when definitive duties, typically for five years, could apply.
The Commission said it would apply rates of 21 per cent for companies deemed to have cooperated with the investigation and of 38.1 per cent for those it said had not.
The new tariffs will come on top of the existing EU tariff of 10 per cent. Western producers such as Tesla and BMW that export cars from China to Europe were considered cooperating companies.
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