The European Aluminum Association (EAA) on Thursday (September 24) welcomed the European Commission’s decision to impose provisional anti-dumping duties of up to 48% on aluminum extrusions from China.
The European Commission launched an investigation in February this year into whether China had dumped aluminum extrusions in the EU. Aluminum extrusions are widely used in the transportation, construction, and electrical industries. Some Chinese metal industry associations have said that “Chinese aluminum extrusions have not caused damage to relevant industries in the European Union, nor have they been dumped in Europe”.
The provisional tariffs were announced Tuesday in a European Commission document.
The European Aluminum Association, which represents European aluminum producers, issued a statement praising the European Commission for doing what it says it will do to protect European trade and hailed “this important milestone in the fight against China’s unfair trade practices.
On the other hand, the EU-China Chamber of Commerce, a lobby group representing Chinese companies in the EU, criticized the European Commission’s plan to protect European companies from being acquired by government-backed foreign firms as a possible violation of World Trade Organization rules.
The European Commission announced in June this year a white paper plan to prevent unfair competition from foreign government-subsidized companies outside the EU, arguing that existing overseas direct investment (OFDI) review rules and trade protection measures are inadequate to protect against potential snapping up of valuable European companies by overseas state-owned enterprises (SOEs) taking advantage of low prices in the wake of the neocoronavirus epidemic. The European Commission has asked the business community and interested parties to provide feedback by September 23 before considering the proposal.
The Brussels-based EU-China Chamber of Commerce said in its submission that the European Commission’s plan could violate the EU’s obligations under the WTO, and that its vague criteria create legal uncertainty.
Meanwhile, the European Commission on Thursday decided to launch an investigation into fiber-optic cables imported from China to determine whether they constitute dumping in the European market. The European Cable Association previously said that Europe laid about 1.2 million kilometers of fiber-optic cables last year, of which 15 to 20 percent came from China, where imports of fiber-optic cables increased by 150 percent between 2016 and 2019.
The European Commission has launched a series of investigations and imposed tariffs on fiber-optic imports from China. Of the 29 trade protection investigations currently underway by the Commission, 18 include imports from China. EU anti-dumping investigations can take up to 15 months, but temporary protective tariffs can be implemented within eight months.
The European Commission has opened a series of investigations and imposed duties on fiber optic imports from China. Of the 29 trade protection investigations currently underway by the Commission, 18 include imports from China. EU anti-dumping investigations can take up to 15 months, but temporary protective tariffs can be implemented within eight months.
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