Industry Position

Hence, several sectors joint efforts at regional and national level and created industrial alliances trying to correct such a potential decision. One such Alliance is AEGIS Europe, bringing together nearly 30 European associations. Other alliances include not only the US level one but several others in Poland, Slovakia, France etc.

AEGIS Europe

AEGIS Europe is a grouping of nearly 30 industrial associations dedicated to ensuring that EU policymakers work towards free and fair international trade. AEGIS members are leaders in sustainable manufacturing and account for more than €500 billion in annual turnover and millions of jobs across the EU. www.aegiseurope.eu.

Industry position

As expressed by the industry, China is not a market economy according to the EU law and there is no indication that it will become one any time soon. The WTO has general rules to allow members to address unfair trade. Special rules are needed to calculate dumping margins of imports from non-market economies because costs and prices in a non-market economy are distorted by government interference. Under Section 9 of its WTO Accession Protocol China made the general commitment to allow all prices „to be determined by market forces“. It has not honoured that commitment. If it had, then there would be no need for special dumping calculation rules for imports from China.

The debate on interpretation of the Protocol is whether these special rules can continue to apply to China after December 2016, once subparagraph 15(a)(ii) will have expired, even if China has not become a market economy and prices continue to be distorted by government interference. How should the remaining provisions of Section 15 be interpreted? And should importing WTO members not interpret the Protocol the same since the Protocol language is the same for all?

As China’s Protocol of Accession is a WTO document, the WTO is the only organisation competent to give a global and definitive interpretation of the Protocol. Until the WTO establishes an agreed interpretation, no WTO member can be sure that its own interpretation of one part of the Protocol is correct.

Despite that, some in the European Commission seem keen to press ahead with a unilateral interpretation of the Protocol and propose that China be considered a market economy. In practice, this would translate into amendments to the Basic EU Anti-dumping Regulation to mandate the use of Chinese prices and costs as the basis for determining the „normal value“ for purposes of the calculation of dumping margins.

Why do we care about Chinese dumping?

• China makes up >50% of all EU anti-dumping cases 

• 80% of all EU anti-dumping and anti-subsidy investigations are against Chin 

• Global anti-dumping and anti-subsidy actions against China have increased by 60% since 2010

• Illegally dumped imports from China represent a significant share of EU