Commission Regulation (EU) No 437/2012 of 23 May 2012 initiating an investigation concerning the possible circumvention of anti-dumping measures imposed by Council Implementing Regulation (EU) No 791/2011 on imports of certain open mesh fabrics of glass fibres originating in the People's Republic of China by imports of certain open mesh fabrics of glass fibres consigned from Taiwan and Thailand, whether declared as originating in Taiwan and Thailand or not, and making such imports subject to registration
Commission Regulation (EU) No 437/2012of 23 May 2012initiating an investigation concerning the possible circumvention of anti-dumping measures imposed by Council Implementing Regulation (EU) No 791/2011 on imports of certain open mesh fabrics of glass fibres originating in the People's Republic of China by imports of certain open mesh fabrics of glass fibres consigned from Taiwan and Thailand, whether declared as originating in Taiwan and Thailand or not, and making such imports subject to registration THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 1225/2009 of 30 November 2009 on protection against dumped imports from countries not members of the European CommunityOJ L 343, 22.12.2009, p. 51. ("the basic Regulation") and in particular Articles 13(3) and 14(5) thereof,After having consulted the Advisory Committee in accordance with Articles 13(3) and 14(5) of the basic Regulation,Whereas:A.REQUEST(1)The European Commission ("the Commission") has received a request pursuant to Articles 13(3) and 14(5) of the basic Regulation to investigate the possible circumvention of the anti-dumping measures imposed on imports of certain open mesh fabrics of glass fibres originating in the People's Republic of China and to make imports of certain open mesh fabrics of glass fibres consigned from Taiwan and Thailand, whether declared as originating in Taiwan and Thailand or not, subject to registration.(2)The request was lodged on 10 April 2012 by Saint-Gobain Adfors CZ s.r.o., Tolnatext Fonalfeldolgozo, Valmieras "Stikla Skiedra" AS and Vitrulan Technical Textiles GmbH, four Union producers of certain open mesh fabrics of glass fibres.B.PRODUCT(3)The product concerned by the possible circumvention is open mesh fabrics of glass fibres, of a cell size of more than 1,8 mm both in length and in width and weighing more than 35g/m2, excluding glass fibre discs, originating in the People’s Republic of China, currently falling within CN codes ex70195100 and ex70195900 ("the product concerned").(4)The product under investigation is the same as that defined in the previous recital, but consigned from Taiwan and Thailand, whether declared as originating in Taiwan and Thailand or not, currently falling within the same CN codes as the product concerned.C.EXISTING MEASURES(5)The measures currently in force and possibly being circumvented are anti-dumping measures imposed by Council Implementing Regulation (EU) No 791/2011OJ L 204, 9.8.2011, p. 1..D.GROUNDS(6)The request contains sufficient prima facie evidence that the anti-dumping measures on imports of certain open mesh fabrics of glass fibres originating in the People’s Republic of China are being circumvented by means of transhipment via Taiwan and Thailand.(7)The prima facie evidence submitted is as follows:(8)The request shows that a significant change in the pattern of trade involving exports from the People's Republic of China, Taiwan and Thailand to the Union has taken place following the imposition of measures on the product concerned, without sufficient due cause or justification for such a change other than the imposition of the duty.(9)This change appears to stem from the transhipment of certain open mesh fabrics of glass fibres originating in the People's Republic of China via Taiwan and Thailand to the Union.(10)Furthermore, the request contains sufficient prima facie evidence that the remedial effects of the existing anti-dumping measures on the product concerned are being undermined both in terms of quantity and price. Significant volumes of imports of the product under investigation appear to have replaced imports of the product concerned. In addition, there is sufficient evidence that imports of the product under investigation are made at prices below the non-injurious price established in the investigation that led to the existing measures.(11)Finally, the request contains sufficient prima facie evidence that the prices of the product under investigation are dumped in relation to the normal value previously established for the product concerned.(12)Should circumvention practices via Taiwan and Thailand covered by Article 13 of the basic Regulation, other than transhipment, be identified in the course of the investigation, the investigation may also cover these practices.E.PROCEDURE(13)In light of the above, the Commission has concluded that sufficient evidence exists to justify the initiation of an investigation pursuant to Article 13(3) of the basic Regulation and to make imports of the product under investigation, whether declared as originating in Taiwan and Thailand or not, subject to registration, in accordance with Article 14(5) of the basic Regulation.(a)Questionnaires(14)In order to obtain the information it deems necessary for its investigation, the Commission will send questionnaires to the known exporters/producers and to the known associations of exporters/producers in Taiwan and Thailand, to the known exporters/producers and to the known associations of exporters/producers in the People's Republic of China, to the known importers and to the known associations of importers in the Union and to the authorities of the People's Republic of China, Taiwan and Thailand. Information, as appropriate, may also be sought from the Union industry.(15)In any event, all interested parties should contact the Commission forthwith, but not later than the time-limit set in Article 3 of this Regulation, and request a questionnaire within the time-limit set in Article 3(1) of this Regulation, given that the time-limit set in Article 3(2) of this Regulation applies to all interested parties.(16)The authorities of the People's Republic of China, Taiwan and Thailand will be notified of the initiation of the investigation.(b)Collection of information and holding of hearings(17)All interested parties are hereby invited to make their views known in writing and to provide supporting evidence. Furthermore, the Commission may hear interested parties, provided that they make a request in writing and show that there are particular reasons why they should be heard.(c)Exemption of registration of imports or measures(18)In accordance with Article 13(4) of the basic Regulation, imports of the product under investigation may be exempted from registration or measures if the importation does not constitute circumvention.(19)Since the possible circumvention takes place outside the Union, exemptions may be granted, in accordance with Article 13(4) of the basic Regulation, to producers in Taiwan and Thailand of open mesh fabrics of glass fibres, of a cell size of more than 1,8mm both in length and in width and weighing more than 35g/m2, excluding glass fibre discs, that can show that they are not relatedIn accordance with Article 143 of Commission Regulation (EEC) No 2454/93 concerning the implementation of the Community Customs Code, persons shall be deemed to be related only if: (a) they are officers or directors of one another's businesses; (b) they are legally recognized partners in business; (c) they are employer and employee; (d) any person directly or indirectly owns, controls or holds 5% or more of the outstanding voting stock or shares of both of them; (e) one of them directly or indirectly controls the other; (f) both of them are directly or indirectly controlled by a third person; (g) together they directly or indirectly control a third person; or (h) they are members of the same family. Persons shall be deemed to be members of the same family only if they stand in any of the following relationships to one another: (i) husband and wife, (ii) parent and child, (iii) brother and sister (whether by whole or half-blood), (iv) grandparent and grandchild, (v) uncle or aunt and nephew or niece, (vi) parent-in-law and son-in-law or daughter-in-law, (vii) brother-in-law and sister-in-law. (OJ L 253, 11.10.1993, p. 1). In this context "person" means any natural or legal person. to any producer subject to the measuresHowever, even if producers are related in the aforementioned sense to companies subject to the measures in place on imports originating in the People’s Republic of China (the original anti-dumping measures), an exemption may still be granted if there is no evidence that the relationship with the companies subject to the original measures was established or used to circumvent the original measures. and that are found not to be engaged in circumvention practices as defined in Articles 13(1) and 13(2) of the basic Regulation. Producers wishing to obtain an exemption should submit a request duly supported by evidence within the time-limit indicated in Article 3(3) of this Regulation.F.REGISTRATION(20)Pursuant to Article 14(5) of the basic Regulation, imports of the product under investigation should be made subject to registration in order to ensure that, should the investigation result in findings of circumvention, anti-dumping duties of an appropriate amount can be levied from the date on which registration of such imports consigned from Taiwan and Thailand was imposed.G.TIME-LIMITS(21)In the interest of sound administration, time-limits should be stated within which:interested parties may make themselves known to the Commission, present their views in writing and submit questionnaire replies or any other information to be taken into account during the investigation,producers in Taiwan and Thailand may request exemption from registration of imports or measures,interested parties may make a written request to be heard by the Commission.Attention is drawn to the fact that the exercise of most procedural rights set out in the basic Regulation depends on the party's making itself known within the time-limits mentioned in Article 3 of this Regulation.H.NON-COOPERATION(22)In cases in which any interested party refuses access to or does not provide the necessary information within the time-limits, or significantly impedes the investigation, findings, affirmative or negative, may be made in accordance with Article 18 of the basic Regulation, on the basis of the facts available.(23)Where it is found that any interested party has supplied false or misleading information, the information shall be disregarded and use may be made of facts available.(24)If an interested party does not cooperate or cooperates only partially and findings are therefore based on the facts available in accordance with Article 18 of the basic Regulation, the result may be less favourable to that party than if it had cooperated.I.SCHEDULE OF THE INVESTIGATION(25)The investigation will be concluded, pursuant to Article 13(3) of the basic Regulation, within nine months of the date of the publication of this Regulation in the Official Journal of the European Union.J.PROCESSING OF PERSONAL DATA(26)It is noted that any personal data collected in this investigation will be treated in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 December 2000 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data by the Community institutions and bodies and on the free movement of such dataOJ L 8, 12.1.2001, p. 1..K.HEARING OFFICER(27)Interested parties may request the intervention of the Hearing Officer of the Directorate-General for Trade. The Hearing Officer acts as an interface between the interested parties and the Commission investigation services. The Hearing Officer reviews requests for access to the file, disputes regarding the confidentiality of documents, requests for extension of time-limits and requests by third parties to be heard. The Hearing Officer may organise a hearing with an individual interested party and mediate to ensure that the interested partie's rights of defence are being fully exercised.(28)A request for a hearing with the Hearing Officer should be made in writing and should specify the reasons for the request. The Hearing Officer will also provide opportunities for a hearing involving parties to take place which would allow different views to be presented and rebuttal arguments offered.(29)For further information and contact details interested parties may consult the Hearing Officer's web pages on the Directorate-General for Trade's website: http://ec.europa.eu/trade/tackling-unfair-trade/hearing-officer/index_en.htm.HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:
Loading ...