On 10 August, the European Commission published a regulation in the Official Journal of the EU, establishing a provisional anti-dumping duty (for six months) on the import of Chinese corrosion resistant steel.
On 9 December 2016, the Commission opened an anti-dumping investigation into the import into the EU of certain types of Chinese corrosion resistant steel (see EUROPE 11805). It had taken action following a complaint lodged on 25 October 2016 by the European steel association Eurofer, which was acting on behalf of producers representing over 53% of the EU's total production of corrosion resistant steel.
From that point, the EU provisionally applied anti-dumping duties up to 28.5% on certain types of Chinese corrosion resistant steel. The Commission said that at the end of the eight-month investigation it had noted that these goods benefitted from undue subsidies. "The Commission provisionally concluded that the imposition of measures would contribute to the recovery of the Union industry by allowing price increases enabling the industry as a whole to return to a profitable situation. This high value-added segment is essential to the overall strategy of the Union steel industry and its future prospects and prosperity", the regulation states.
The EU's new import duties, which range from 17.2% to 28.5%, will affect the Shougang Group, Shagang Group, and Hesteel Group, as well as other Chinese companies. These companies have 25 days to contest this decision. The Commission will decide in the next six months whether the measures are to become definitive. Interested parties now have time to comment on the decision.
The EU has imposed anti-dumping duties on different Chinese steel products over recent years. On 6 April, the Commission decided to impose anti-dumping duties on hot-rolled flat steel products from China (see EUROPE 11763). (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)