The Chinese government on Wednesday announced a retaliatory probe into the European Union’s trade practices, including Brussels’ use of anti-subsidy investigations. The EU has launched a range of investigations into subsidies received by Chinese suppliers of wind and solar energy components, as well as China’s state railways. China’s Commerce Ministry said that, in an apparent tit-for-tat move, it had launched a formal inquiry to determine whether these EU investigations amounted to the erection of a “investment and trade barrier” against Chinese firms. Specifically, Beijing’s investigation wi…