Decision to slap duties of up to 35 per cent on mainland imports lays bare divisions in European leadership as complex negotiations continue A near-audible sigh of relief emanated from European Commission headquarters on Friday as it gained enough backing from the EU's 27 members to slap tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles.

European Union countries failed to vote clearly in favour or against tariffs of up to 45% on Chinese electric vehicles, leaving the European Commission to decide what to do, EU sources said on Friday.