People visit the BYD booth at the 2023 International Motor Show, officially known as the IAA MOBILITY 2023, in Munich, Germany, Sept 8, 2023. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

BEIJING - The European Commission's anti-subsidy investigation into the imports of Chinese electric vehicles lacks sufficient evidence and is a typical act of trade protectionism, China's Ministry of Commerce said Thursday.

At a press conference, a spokesperson for the ministry He Yadong said the European Commission launched the investigation on Oct 4 without any industrial application, and that China strongly opposes such a move.

The probe seriously disrupts and distorts global automotive industrial and supply chains, is not conducive to Chinese, European and even the world's responses to climate change, and will harm China-EU economic and trade relations, the spokesperson said.

He said China-EU economic and trade cooperation features complementarity and mutual benefit.

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"We hope that the European Commission will listen carefully to the opinions of all parties, abandon trade protectionist practices, support the automotive industries of China and Europe in deepening trade and investment cooperation, promote win-win development, and create a good environment for the two sides to respond jointly to climate change and achieve green transformation," he said.