Commercial Information Circulars

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

27 April 2010

Dear Sirs,

Commercial Information Circular No. 177/2010

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

Further to the Commercial Information Circular No. 41/2010 of 22 January 2010, the European Commission (the Commission) has published a notice to initiate an expiry review of the anti-dumping measures imposed on imports of furfuraldehyde 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:2010:107:0010:0013:EN:PDF.

DETAILS

Ground for the Review

The expiry review is initiated at the request of two Union producers, Lenzing AG and Tanin Sevnica kemicna industrija d.d. (the applicants), representing a major proportion, in this case more than 50 % of the Union production of furfuraldehyde. The request is based on the grounds that the expiry of the measures would be likely to result in a continuation of dumping and recurrence of injury to the Union industry.

Ground for the Review

Salient points of the expiry review are set out below-

(a) Date of Publication of the Notice of Initiation

27 April 2010

(b) Product Coverage

2-furaldehyde (also known as furfuraldehyde or furfural) falling within CN code 2932 12 00.

In view of the apparent large number of parties involved in the proceeding, the Commission may apply sampling. To enable the Commission to decide whether sampling is necessary and, if so, to select a sample, all exporters/producers, or representatives acting on their behalf should make themselves known to the Commission and provide information requested in paragraph 5.1 (a) (i) of the notice in question, including contact details, turnover, activities of their company/related companies, production, and indication of agreement for being included in the sample which implies replying to a questionnaire and accepting an on-the-spot investigation. Such information should reach the Commission within 15 days from 27 April 2010. All interested parties wishing to submit any relevant information regarding the selection of the sample must do so within 21 days from 27 April 2010. The Commission intends to make the final selection of the samples after having consulted the parties concerned that have expressed their willingness to be included in the sample.

In order to obtain necessary information for the investigation, the Commission will send questionnaires to, among others, the sampled Union industry, any association of producers in the Union,
sampled exporters/producers in the Mainland of China, any association of exporters/producers, sampled importers, any association of importers, and the authorities of the Mainland of China.

If sampling is applied, sampled parties must reply to the questionnaires within 37 days from the date of the notification of their inclusion in the sample.

All interested parties should request a questionnaire or other claim forms within 15 days from 27 April 2010.

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 37 days from 27 April 2010, unless otherwise specified. They may also apply to be heard by the Commission within 37 days from 27 April 2010.

It is envisaged to choose Argentina 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 27 April 2010.

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: N-105 04/92
1049 Brussels
Belgium
Fax: +32 22956505

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 27 April 2010.

BACKGROUND

Definitive anti-dumping duty on imports of furfuraldehyde originating in the Mainland of China had been imposed since 22 January 1995 at a rate of EUR 352 per tonne. Following an interim review, the duty had been extended for another four years starting from 23 December 1999. The Commission initiated an expiry review on 18 December 2003 on the anti-dumping measures. Based on the results of the review investigation, the anti-dumping duty has been maintained for another five years since 29 April 2005.

ENQUIRIES

For enquiries concerning the contents of this circular, please contact the undersigned at telephone number 2398 5684.

Yours faithfully,

(Alex LI)

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.

Note ：

(1) While every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the above information, the Department cannot guarantee this to be so and will not be held liable for any reliance placed on the same.

(2)The biweekly newsletter "Business Alert - EU" of the Hong Kong Trade Development Council provides up-to-date information on the latest developments in EU trade policy and trade regulations. The newsletter is available for free e-subscription and can be accessed through
http://www.tdctrade.com/alert/eualert.htm.