Commercial Information Circulars

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Ref : EIC 230/2/3/2/13

5 December 2008

Dear Sirs,

Commercial Information Circular No. 614/2008

European Union (EU)* : Initiation of an Expiry Review of the Anti-dumping Measures on Imports of Certain Ring Binder Mechanisms Originating in the Mainland of China

Further to Commercial Information Circular No. 325/2008 of 12 June 2008, the European Commission (the Commission) has published a notice to initiate an expiry review of the anti-dumping measures imposed on imports of certain ring binder mechanisms (RBMs) originating in the Mainland of China. The notice can be accessed through the following link :
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:C:2008:310:0015:0018:EN:PDF.

DETAILS

Grounds for the Review

2. On the basis of a request lodged by Ring Alliance Ringbuchtechnik GmbH representing more than 50% of the Community production of certain RBMs, the Commission initiated the expiry review on 5 December 2008. The request is based on the grounds that the expiry of measures would be likely to result in a continuation or recurrence of dumping and injury to the Community industry.

Review Procedures

3. Salient points of the expiry review are set out below-

(a) Date of Publication of the Notice	:	5 December 2008
(b) Product Coverage	:	Certain ring binder mechanisms, currently classifiable within CN code ex 8305 10 00 (this CN code is given only for information). For the purpose of this notice, ring binder mechanisms shall consist of two steel sheets or wires with at least four half-rings made of steel wire fixed on them and which are kept together by a steel cover. They can be opened either by pulling the half rings or with a small steel trigger mechanism fixed to the ring binder mechanism.
(c) Procedures	:	In order to obtain necessary information for the investigation, the Commission will send questionnaires to the Community industry, any known association of producers in the Community, the exporters/producers in the Mainland of China, any association of exporters/producers, the sampled importers, any known association of importers, and the authorities of the Mainland of China. Interested parties who did not co-operate in the investigation leading to the measures subject to the present review should request a questionnaire or other claim forms within 15 days from 5 December 2008. All interested parties, if their representations are to be taken into account, must make themselves known by contacting the Commission, present their views and submit questionnaire replies or any other information within 40 days from 5 December 2008. It is envisaged to choose Thailand as a market economy country for the purpose of establishing normal value in respect of the Mainland of China. Interested parties are invited to comment on the appropriateness of this choice within 10 days from 5 December 2008. All correspondence must be made in writing (not in electronic format, unless otherwise specified) indicating the name, address, e-mail address, telephone and fax numbers of the interested party and should be sent to the following address : European Commission Directorate General for Trade Directorate H Office : N105 04/92 B-1049 Brussels Fax : (32-2) 295 65 05 If interested parties consider that they are encountering difficulties in the exercise of their rights of defence, they may request the intervention of the Hearing Officer, who offers, where necessary, mediation on procedural matters affecting the protection of their interests in this proceeding, in particular, with regard to issues concerning access to the file, confidentiality, extension of time limits and the treatment of written and/or oral submission of views. For further information and contact details, interested parties may consult the Hearing Officer's web pages on the website of DG Trade (http://ec.europa.eu/trade).
(d) Investigation Schedule	:	Investigation will be concluded within 15 months from 5 December 2008.

BACKGROUND

4. Definitive anti-dumping duty on certain RBMs originating in the Mainland of China has been imposed since 25 January 1997. The current duty rate for mechanisms with 17 and 23 rings is the differences between minimum import price of EUR 325 per 1,000 pieces and the net, free-at-Community-frontier before duty. As for mechanisms other than those with 17 or 23 rings, the current duty rate is 78.8% of the net, free-at-Community-frontier price before duty. Consequent to an expiry review, the anti-dumping duty has been extended for another four years since 5 December 2004. Furthermore, based on the findings of two separate circumvention investigations, the definitive anti-dumping duty imposed on imports of certain RBMs originating in the Mainland of China has been extended to imports of the same products consigned from Vietnam and Lao People's Democratic Republic, whether declared as originating in Vietnam and Lao People's Democratic Republic or not.

ENQUIRIES

5. For enquiries concerning the content of this circular, please contact the undersigned at telephone number 2398 5351.

Yours faithfully,

 

(TANG Yu Him)
for Director-General of Trade and Industry

* The EU includes Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom.