- 'Second family': tennis stars hunt winning formula with new coaches
- Philippines, South Korea agree to deepen maritime cooperation
- Mexico mayor murdered days after taking office
- Sardinia's sheep farmers battle bluetongue as climate warms
- Japan govt admits doctoring 'untidy' cabinet photo
- Israel marks first anniversary of Hamas's October 7 attack
- Darvish tames Ohtani as Padres thrash Dodgers
- Asian markets track Wall St rally on jobs data
- Family affair as LeBron, Bronny James make Lakers bow
- Cancer, cardiovascular drugs tipped for Nobel as prize week opens
- As Great Salt Lake dries, Utah Republicans pardon Trump climate skepticism
- Amazon activist warns of 'critical situation' ahead of UN forum
- Mourners pay tribute to latest victims of deadly Channel crossing
- Tunisia incumbent Saied set to win presidential vote: exit polls
- Phillies win thriller to level Mets series
- Yu bags first PGA Tour win with playoff win
- PSG held by Nice to leave Monaco clear at top of Ligue 1
- AC Milan fall at Fiorentina after De Gea's penalty heroics
- Lewandowski treble for leaders Barca as Atletico held
- Fresh Israeli strikes hit south Beirut
- Sucic stunner earns Real Sociedad draw against Atletico
- PSG draw with Nice, fail to reclaim top spot in Ligue 1
- Gudmundsson downs AC Milan after De Gea's penalty heroics for Fiorentina
- 'Yes' vote prevails in Kazakhstan nuclear plant vote: TV
- 'Difficult day': Oct 7 commemorations begin with festival memorial
- Commemorations begin for anniversary of attack on Israel
- Lewandowski hat-trick powers Liga leaders Barca to Alaves victory
- 'Nothing gets in way of team,' says Celtics' MVP hopeful Tatum
- India maintain Pakistan stranglehold as Windies cruise at Women's T20 World Cup
- 'We will win!': Mozambique's ruling party confident at final vote rally
- Tunisia voting ends as Saied eyes re-election with critics behind bars
- Florida braces for Milton, FEMA head slams 'dangerous' Helene misinformation
- Postecoglou slams 'unacceptable' Spurs after 'terrible' loss at Brighton
- Marmoush double denies Bayern outright Bundesliga top spot
- Rallies worldwide call for Gaza, Lebanon ceasefire
- Maresca hails Chelsea's 'fighting' spirit after draw with 10-man Forest
- New 'Joker' film, a dark musical, tops N.America box office
- Man Utd stalemate keeps Ten Hag in danger, Spurs rocked by Brighton
- Drowned by hurricane, remote N.Carolina towns now struggle for water
- Vikings hold off Jets in London to stay unbeaten
- Ahead of attack anniversary, Netanyahu says: 'We will win'
- West Indies cruise to T20 World Cup win over Scotland
- Arshdeep, Chakravarthy help India hammer Bangladesh in T20 opener
- Lewandowski's quickfire hat-trick powers Liga leaders Barca to Alaves victory
- Man Utd fire another blank in Aston Villa stalemate
- Lewandowski treble powers Liga leaders Barca to Alaves victory
- Russian activist killed on front line in Ukraine
- Openda strike briefly sends Leipzig top of Bundesliga
- Goal-shy Man Utd have to 'step up', says Ten Hag
- India bowl out Bangladesh for 127 in T20 opener
UK carmakers hope for delay to post-Brexit tariff
The UK carmaking industry is hopeful of a postponement in a provision in the nation's post-Brexit EU trade treaty, which will otherwise impose a 10-percent tariff on electric vehicles.
Britain left the European Union in early 2021 after clinching a last-gasp free trade deal, removing tariffs for the nation's largely foreign-owned carmakers.
However, under the deal's "rules of origin" condition for goods crossing the border, from 2024 at least 45 percent of the value of vehicle parts must originate from Britain or the European Union in order to be exempt from customs duties.
Batteries, which represent a significant chunk of the sale price of an electric vehicle, often originate from China despite UK efforts to establish its own gigafactories to manufacture them.
"We are still optimistic that an agreement will be reached" before the looming change on January 1, said Mike Hawes, chief executive of industry body the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders.
"It makes common sense because the last thing you want to do is put additional tariffs on the very vehicles you are encouraging people to buy," he told an SMMT conference in London.
Hawes added: "We are optimistic but I can see this going down, like we did with Brexit, to Christmas Eve or something like that."
The UK plans to ban sales of new petrol and diesel vehicles from 2030, as it aims for net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 -- which means the sector must switch to producing fully electric cars.
Britain is also a vital market for EU-based car producers.
Germany this month urged the European Commission to postpone tariffs on electric car sales between the UK and the EU, according to a Financial Times report.
Added to the backdrop, Brussels last week announced an investigation into Chinese state subsidies for electric cars, and this could result in higher customs duties as the bloc seeks to defend its industry from unfair competition.
Monday's SMMT plea comes one week after German car giant BMW unveiled plans to ramp up production of electric Mini cars in Britain, backed partly with UK support.
India's Tata Group in July said it would build a £4-billion in Britain to manufacture batteries, as nations accelerate away from fossil fuel vehicles.
G.Stevens--AMWN