Brussels, 07/02/2012 (Agence Europe) - The US is abandoning its reduction method for calculating anti-dumping margins on the basis of imports (zeroing). This method was condemned by the WTO following complaints from the EU and Japan. It will now be necessary to respect a roadmap on establishing compliance in this connection.
On Monday 6 February, the US announced that it was abandoning its zeroing reduction method for calculating anti-dumping margins, which has been criticised on several occasions by the WTO, following complaints by the EU (2004, 2006) and Japan (2007). This calculation method enabled the US authorities to accuse a country of dumping a specific product by basing its calculation exclusively on the prices of certain exporters from the country targeted and not on the prices of all the exporters from the country, as stipulated in WTO rules. Despite the WTO appellate body's ruling against the US, the country refused to accept the decision and was in danger of seeing some of its products hit by EU and Japanese custom duties as reprisals.
On Monday, the US government therefore agreed with EU and Japan on roadmaps to establish conformity with the WTO verdict. The US is now committed to applying a new methodology to calculate anti-dumping duty rates in all new review anti-dumping investigations launched as of mid-February 2012. In addition, the anti-dumping duty rates on goods imported into the US after May 2010 will also be determined under the new methodology without zeroing.
This will benefit about 30 EU exporters who are currently affected by ongoing US anti-dumping administrative reviews for 10 different products. Furthermore, 35 EU exporters in anti-dumping cases for 8 different products, some of which are currently not taking part in US anti-dumping administrative reviews but are affected by zeroing, will have their anti-dumping duty rates determined without zeroing. Therefore, as of June 2012 no EU exporter should be subject to an anti-dumping duty affected by zeroing. This could save EU exporters about USD 15 million a year. In a press release, the commissioner for trade, Karel De Gucht, welcomed the fact that “this understanding solves this longstanding dispute. It will bring immediate relief to EU exporters who will no longer have to pay excessive anti-dumping duties; some of them will not pay any anti-dumping duties at all”. (EH/transl.fl)