Brussels, 13/01/2006 (Agence Europe) - On 12 January, the anti-dumping committee composed of experts from the Commission and Member States held the door ajar for anti-dumping action (via compensatory customs surcharges) against imports of leather and safety shoes from china, refusing market economy status for 13 Chinese manufacturers. The Commission considers it does not have a clear idea of the real cost of shoe manufacture in China. These costs will be compared to those of another economy, Brazil, to determine whether or not dumping exists. The Chinese Deputy Minister for Trade, Gao Hucheng, who was in Brussels this week, was shocked by this decision. Mr Gao, who believes the Commission inquiry is substantially faulty, challenges the choice of taking Brazil as a reference, as it is a country where labour costs are far higher than in China. Indonesia, he said, would have been a far more relevant reference. Mr Gao said, moreover, that possible anti-dumping tariffs would penalise European consumers. The federation for the European sporting goods industry (FESI), whose members are Chinese footwear importers, considers this decision denies the reality of the market. FESI accuses the European footwear confederation, which is at the origin of the dumping complaint filed against China and Vietnam, of having exaggerated the progression of Chinese exports following the lifting of quotas on 1 January 2005. The Eurocommerce association, which defends the interests of European distributors, also urges the Commission not to establish compensatory anti-dumping duties that would penalise European importers and consumers. When questioned by reporters on Thursday, a Commission spokesperson refused to say whether the Union planned to establish a minimum sales price for Chinese shoes as proposed by the European branded footwear coalition. Commissioner Mandelson is to be in Italy next week to discuss this dossier with the government and with representatives of the shoe industry. The Commission is to give preliminary conclusions to the anti-dumping inquiry launched last July by 7 April.