Brandy Anti-Dumping Aftermath...Hennessy resists union backlash over 'Cognac bottling in China'

French liquor company Hennessy, the top Cognac market player, temporarily suspended plans due to union backlash after it tried to bottle up in China to avoid temporary anti-dumping measures against European Union brandy.

Local media said the subsidiary of luxury group Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy (LVMH) recently informed staff representatives of its plans to test the way local subcontractors bottle up Cognac after it exported large quantities to China in the middle of next month.

This comes after the EU earlier decided to impose tariffs of up to 45.3% on Chinese electric vehicles, and the Chinese government implemented temporary anti-dumping measures on EU brandies, which affected French brandies such as cognac.

Hennessy sought a detour to merge in China, but decided to put it on hold for now after the union, concerned about job losses, staged a strike and protested.

French President Emmanuel Macron met with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the occasion of the G20 summit in Brazil on the 19th and agreed to find a positive solution to the brandy anti-dumping measures by the first quarter of next year.

To that end, French Prime Minister Michel Barnier will visit China early next year to discuss the issue, Macron explained.