COMMISSION REGULATION (EC) No 2604/97 of 16 December 1997 introducing prior Community surveillance of imports of certain iron and steel products covered by the ECSC and EC Treaties originating in certain third countries
THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,
Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 3285/94 of 22 December 1994 on common rules for imports and repealing Regulation (EC) No 518/94 (1), as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 2315/96 (2), and in particular Article 11 thereof,
Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 519/94 of 7 March 1994 on common rules for imports from certain third countries and repealing Regulations (EEC) No 1765/82, (EEC) No 1766/82 and (EEC) No 3420/83 (3), as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 847/97 (4), and in particular Article 9 (1) thereof,
Consultations having taken place within the Committees set up under the Regulations referred to above,
Whereas by Commission Regulation (EC) No 2412/96 (5), imports into the Community of certain iron and steel products covered by the Treaty establishing the European Coal and Steel Community and the Treaty establishing the European Community were subject to a priori Community surveillance;
Whereas in accordance with the provisions of Regulations (EC) No 3285/94 and (EC) No 519/94, products covered by the Treaty establishing the European Coal and Steel Community are subject to the common rules for imports and it is therefore necessary that the arrangements for Community surveillance measures in respect of ECSC products be adopted in accordance with the provisions of those Regulations;
Whereas the steel market in the Community has been unstable in recent years, partly due to pressure from imports and notably from regions with excessive production capacity and weak domestic consumption. The steel market was still unstable in early 1996, but stabilized during that year and has recovered since the first months of 1997. This positive trend is expected to continue into 1998, but this depends on market and exchange rate developments. Available economic indicators show the following trends:
(a) Production. In 1996, production of crude steel in the Community decreased to 148 million tonnes, 5 % below 1995. During the first eight months of 1997, Community production increased by 7,6 % compared with the same period of 1996. For 1997 as a whole, production is expected to be above the 1995 level of 156 million tonnes;
(b) Imports. Imports of ECSC products into the Community from all third countries amounted to 13,4 million tonnes in 1996, 65 % of which (8,7 million tonnes) were flat and long products. For 1996 the imports decreased by 25 % for all ECSC products. This drop in imports was preceded by sharp increases of 30 to 35 % in 1995 and 1994. Furthermore, the average 25 % decrease in the level of imports in 1996 reflects decreases of 52 % for semi-finished products and 33 % for long products, whereas imports of flat products decreased by 12 %. Member States are unequally affected by these trends. In some Member States, imports of certain flat or long products have increased by more than 100 % compared with the same period of 1995. During the first six months of 1997, imports of ECSC products amounted to 7,3 million tonnes, an average decrease of 1 % compared with the same period in 1996, which reflects a decrease of 6 % for semi-finished products, a 3 % decrease for flat products and an increase of 22 % for long products. Imports are expected to grow in the remaining months of 1997. Forecasts for 1998 are, however, hard to establish with certainty because of the absence of up-to-date trade statistics for all Member States and important changes in trade structures;
(c) Exports. Exports of ECSC products increased to 24,5 million tonnes in 1996. The average 24 % increase in the level of exports in 1996 compared with 1995, reflects increases of 70 % for semi-finished products, 19 % for flat products and 13 % for long products. For the first six months of 1997, exports of ECSC products amounted to 10,4 million tonnes, an average decrease of 12 % compared with the same period in 1996, which reflects decreases of 55 % for semi-finished products, 4 % for flat products but an increase of 4 % for long products. This situation is expected to continue in the second semester of 1997;
(d) Similar trends apply to certain steel products covered by the EC Treaty:
- in 1996, production of narrow strip coil decreased by 10 % compared with 1995. Imports decreased by an average of 3,0 % in 1996 compared with 1995. For the first six months of 1997, imports decreased by an average of 8 % compared with the same period in 1996. However, these general trends conceal the pressure of imports in certain regions of the Community,
- in 1996, production of steel tubes and pipes decreased by 3,6 % compared with 1995. During the first six months of 1997, Community production increased by 8,4 % compared with the same period in 1996. Imports of steel tubes and pipes decreased by an average of 4,7 % in 1996 compared with 1995. For the first six months of 1997, imports of steel tubes and pipes increased by an average of 8 % compared with the same period in 1996;
Whereas, therefore, the trends with respect to certain ECSC and EC products originating in third countries covered by this Regulation threaten to cause injury to Community producers;
Whereas the Community's external trade statistics are not available within the periods established by Commission Regulation No 840/96 (6) and whereas it is necessary that this problem should be addressed urgently in order to be solved, at the latest, during 1998;
Whereas the interests of the Community require that imports of certain steel products should be subject to prior Community surveillance in order to provide statistical information permitting rapid analysis of import trends;
Whereas the completion of the internal market requires that the formalities to be accomplished by Community importers be identical wherever the goods may be cleared;
Whereas release for free circulation of the products covered by this Regulation should be made subject to presentation of a surveillance document meeting uniform criteria;
Whereas that document should on simple application by the importer, be endorsed by the authorities of the Member States within a certain period but without the importer thereby acquiring any right to import; the document should therefore be valid only during such period as the import rules remain unchanged;
Whereas the surveillance documents issued for the purposes of Community surveillance must be valid throughout the Community, regardless of the Member State of issue;
Whereas the Member States and the Commission should exchange the information resulting from Community surveillance as fully as possible;
Whereas the issue of surveillance documents, while subject to standard conditions at Community level, is to be the responsibility of the national authorities;
Whereas it should be recalled that the delivery of a surveillance documentation for certain iron and steel products is subject to presentation of an export document in accordance with arrangements established within the framework of double-checking agreements with certain third countries, and whereas the present Regulation does not apply to the products originating in those countries which are subject to such a double-checking system,
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:
Article 1
1. From 1 January 1998, the release for free circulation in the Community of iron and steel products covered by the ECSC and EC Treaties listed in Annex I, originating in non-member countries other than the countries of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) or countries which are parties to the Agreement on the European Economic Area (EEA), shall be subject to prior Community surveillance in accordance with Articles 11 and 12 of Regulation (EC) No 3285/94 and Articles 9 and 10 of Regulation (EC) No 519/94. However, products which are subject to a double-checking surveillance agreement established between a non-member country and the Community shall be subject to the conditions established by that agreement and not to the present Regulation.
2. The classification of the products covered by this Regulation is based on the tariff and statistical nomenclature of the Community (hereinafter called the 'combined nomenclature`, or in abbreviated form 'CN`). The origin of the products covered by this Regulation shall be determined in accordance with the rules in force in the Community.
Article 2
1. The release for free circulation of the products referred to in Article 1 in the Community shall be subject to presentation of a surveillance document issued by the relevant authorities of a Member State.
2. The surveillance document referred to in paragraph 1 shall be issued automatically by the competent authority in the Member States, without charge for any quantities requested, within five working days of presentation of an application by any Community importer, wherever established in the Community. This application shall be deemed to have been received by the competent national authority no later than three working days after submission, unless it is proven otherwise.
3. A surveillance document issued by one of the authorities listed in Annex II shall be valid throughout the Community.
4. The surveillance document shall be made out on a form corresponding to the model in Annex III. The importer's application shall include the following elements:
(a) the name and full address of the applicant (including telephone and telefax numbers, and possible identification number used by the competent national authorities) and VAT registration number, if subject to VAT;
(b) if applicable, the name and full address of the declarant or representative of the applicant (including telephone and telefax numbers);
(c) the full name and address of the exporter;
(d) the exact description of the goods, including:
- their trade name,
- the combined nomenclature (CN) code(s),
- the country of origin,
- the country of consignment;
(e) the net weight, expressed in kilograms and also quantity in the unit prescribed where other than net weight, by combined nomenclature heading;
(f) the cif value of the goods in ecu at the Community frontier by combined nomenclature heading;
(g) whether the products concerned are seconds or of substandard quality (7);
(h) the proposed period and place of customs clearance;
(i) whether the application is a repeat of a previous application concerning the same contract;
(j) the following declaration, dated and signed by the applicant with the transcription of his name in capital letters:
'I, the undersigned, certify that the information provided in this application is true and given in good faith, and that I am established in the Community.`,
The importer shall also submit a copy of the contract of sale or purchase and of the pro forma invoice. If so requested, for example in cases where the goods are not directly purchased in the country of production, the importer shall present a certificate of production issued by the producing steel mill.
5. Surveillance documents may be used only for such time as arrangements for liberalization of imports remain in force in respect of the transactions concerned. Without prejudice to possible changes in the import regulations in force or decisions taken in the framework of an agreement or the management of a quota:
- the period of validity of the surveillance document is hereby fixed at four months,
- unused or partly used surveillance documents may be renewed for an equal period.
6. The importer shall return surveillance documents to the issuing authority at the end of their period of validity.
7. The competent authorities may, under the conditions fixed by them, allow the submission of declarations or requests to be transmitted or printed by electronic means. However, all documents and evidence must be available to the competent authorities.
8. The surveillance document may be issued by electronic means as long as the customs offices involved have access to this document across a computer network.
Article 3
1. A finding that the unit price at which the transaction is effected varies from that indicated in the surveillance document by less than 5 % in either direction or that the total quantity of the products presented for import exceeds the quantity given in the surveillance document by less than 5 % shall not preclude the release for free circulation of the products in question.
2. Applications for surveillance documents and the documents themselves shall be confidential. They shall be restricted to the competent authorities and the applicant.
Article 4
1. The Member States shall communicate to the Commission:
(a) on as regular and up-to-date a basis as possible and at least by the last day of each month, details of the quantities and values (calculated in ecus) for which surveillance documents have been issued;
(b) within 6 weeks of the end of each month, details of imports during that month, in accordance with Article 26 of Regulation No 840/96.
The information provided by Member States shall be broken down by product, CN code and by country.
2. The Member States shall give notification of any anomalies or cases of fraud which they discover and, where relevant, the basis on which they have refused to grant a surveillance document.
Article 5
Any notices to be given hereunder shall be given to the Commission of the European Communities and shall be communicated electronically within the integrated network set up for this purpose, unless for imperative technical reasons it is necessary to use other means of communication temporarily.
Article 6
This Regulation shall enter into force on the day of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Communities.
This Regulation shall apply from 1 January to 31 December 1998.
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.
Done at Brussels, 16 December 1997.