A contentious EU trade case targeting Chinese solar panel companies should be resolved through negotiations, Germany’s chancellor said yesterday, reflecting Beijing’s growing clout with its European trading partners.

Angela Merkel’s reluctance to support a trade action instigated by a German company was communicated at a meeting in Beijing with Wen Jiabao, the Chinese premier.

It appears to put her at odds with Karel De Gucht, the EU trade commissioner who has taken a harder line against Beijing for what he contends are unfair trading practices.

Mr De Gucht is expected to open a formal investigation next week to determine whether Chinese manufacturers have dumped their products on the EU. That review could lead to punitive tariffs – an outcome the chancellor told her Chinese hosts she was keen to avoid.

“We should try to solve the problems in the solar sector to avoid an anti-dumping case,” Dr Merkel said. “We have time for that and it would be better if we could find a solution through talks.”

Mr Wen said Dr Merkel’s call for talks could serve as a model for the solution of trade conflicts worldwide.

A spokesman for Mr De Gucht said her comments had been noted. – Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2012