Commission proposes changes to the EU’s anti-dumping and anti-subsidy legislation

The Commission today proposed a new method for calculating dumping on imports from countries where there are significant market distortions, or where the state has a pervasive influence on the economy. The aim is to make sure that Europe’s trade defence instruments (TDIs) are able to deal with current realities – notably overcapacities – in the international trading environment, while fully respecting the EU’s international obligations in the legal framework of the World Trade Organisation. The proposal, which introduces changes to the EU’s anti-dumping and anti-subsidy legislation, follows a broad public consultation and is accompanied by an impact assessment. The impact assessment demonstrates that the new methodology would result in a broadly equivalent level of anti-dumping duties as is currently the case. As a transition measure, this new anti-dumping methodology would only apply to cases initiated once the amended rules are in force. The EU anti-subsidy legislation would also be strengthened by allowing any subsidies revealed in the course of an investigation to be investigated and included in the final duties imposed. The European Parliament and the Council will now decide on the proposal through the ordinary legislative procedure. Today’s proposal should be seen in the context of the October European Council’s call for an urgent and balanced agreement on the Council position on the comprehensive modernisation of all trade defence instruments by the end of 2016. Reforming the anti-dumping methodology would be an important part of the reforms needed, on top of the modernisation of all trade defence instruments which the Commission proposed back in 2013.