Brussels, 16/06/2005 (Agence Europe) - After meeting representatives from the European Confederation of Footwear Industries (EUROPE 8970) and receiving a complaint on safety shoes, Peter Mandelson has decided to recommend that the Commission (by written procedure) of an anti-dumping enquiry (maximum of 9 months and apply WTO rules) on Chinese shoe exports. After Commission approval, the enquiry could begin at the end of June. If investigations by the Commission reveal that shoes are being trade in Europe below production prices, the EU could hit them with anti-dumping duties appertaining to “non-counter productive” limitations. Last week, figures from the Commission's customs monitoring system suggested an explosion in Chinese shoe exports to the EU since 1 January of almost 700% over first four months of the year compared to the same period last year for six categories of shoes, as well as a 28% reduction in shoe units, leading to suspicions by European sector businesses of dumping occurring (EUROPE 8964).