China - EU, public consultation on future anti-dumping measures

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Commission opened a public consultation on future measures to prevent dumped imports from China

EU-China - photocredit European Parliament

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Accession Protocol to WTO, December 2016 expiry

Dumping means exporting goods at prices lower than the home-market prices. It is legal under WTO General Agreement On Tariff and Trade rules unless its injurious effect on the importing country's producers can be established. If injury is established, GATT rules allow imposition of anti-dumping duty equal to the difference between the exporter's home-market price and the importer's FOB (Free On Board) price.

On 11 December 2016 certain provisions of the Accession Protocol to the WTO of the People's Republic of China expire. As a result, the European Commission is analysing the possible impact on the EU's anti-dumping legislation (Regulation (EC) n. 1225/2009). If an amendment of the anti-dumping legislation were deemed necessary, this may result in lower anti-dumping duties which may not balance the negative effects of dumping, causing bigger injury to the EU industries and jobs.

Now the question is whether (and, if so, how) the EU should change the treatment of China in its anti-dumping investigations after 11 December 2016. 

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Public online consultation on future anti-dumping measures 

In this context, European Commission launched a public online consultation on the matter, which will be open for ten weeks. The aim of the consultation is to collect stakeholders' input regarding the options on how to respond to the mentioned expiry of some provisions of the Chinese Accession Protocol to the WTO. The consultation aims to ensure that all relevant entities have the opportunity to comment on the economic and social impacts of the options under consideration. 

These are the three options being considered by Commission:

  • Option 1: leaving the EU legislation unchanged,
  • Option 2: changing the antidumping methodology for trade defence investigations against China with no mitigating measures,
  • Option 3: Changing the antidumping methodology for China as part of a package including mitigating measures.

The Commission will use the results of the consultation to better identify the most suitable regulatory and non-regulatory actions to put into effect and decide whether and how to propose amendments to mentioned Regulation (EC) N° 1225/2009 and Regulation (EC) n. 597/2009 on protection against subsidised imports from countries not members of the EU.

EC Open public on future measures to prevent dumped imports from China