62016TJ0753_INF
Judgment of the General Court (Tenth Chamber) of 22 September 2021 –Severstal v Commission
(Case T‑753/16)
(Dumping – Imports of certain cold-rolled flat steel products originating in China and Russia – Definitive anti-dumping duty – Article 18 of Regulation (EC) No 1225/2009 (now Article 18 of Regulation (EU) 2016/1036) – Use of facts available – Article 2(3), (4), (9), (10) and (12) of Regulation No 1225/2009 (now Article 2(3), (4), (9), (10) and (12) of Regulation 2016/1036) – Calculation of the normal value, the export price and the dumping margin – Article 3(2) and (5) of Regulation No 1225/2009 (now Article 3(2) and (5) of Regulation 2016/1036) – Determination of the existence of injury – Article 3(7) of Regulation No 1225/2009 (now Article 3(7) of Regulation 2016/1036) – Causal link – Article 2(9) and Article 9(4) of Regulation No 1225/2009 (now Article 2(9) and Article 9(4) of Regulation 2016/1036) – Injury elimination – Rights of the defence – Principle of good administration – Proportionality – Manifest errors of assessment)
1.
Common commercial policy – Protection against dumping – Course of the investigation – Obligation for the interested parties to provide the necessary information – Scope – Verification by the Commission
(Agreement on Implementation of Article VI of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (1994 Anti-Dumping Agreement), Arts 6.6 and 6.7; Council Regulation No 1225/2009, Arts 6(2) and (8), 16(1) and (3) and 18(3) and (6); European Parliament and Council Regulation 2016/1036, Arts 6(2) and (8), 16(1) and (3) and 18(6))
(see paras 46-50, 53, 55, 122)
2.
Common commercial policy – Protection against dumping – Course of the investigation – Use of the information available where the undertaking refuses cooperation – Conditions – Refusal of access to the necessary information – Concept of necessary information – Information on raw material costs – Included – Need for intentional refusal – None
(Agreement on Implementation of Article VI of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (1994 Anti-Dumping Agreement), Art. 6.8; Council Regulation No 1225/2009, Art. 18(1) to (3))
(see paras 51, 54, 65, 66, 78, 79, 95)
3.
Common commercial policy – Protection against dumping – Discretion of the institutions – Judicial review – Limits
(see paras 56, 57)
4.
Common commercial policy – Protection against dumping – Course of the investigation – Account taken of information not the best in all respects – Conditions
(Council Regulation No 1225/2009, Art. 18(3))
(see para. 80)
5.
Common commercial policy – Protection against dumping – Course of the investigation – Use of the information available where the undertaking refuses cooperation – Unreliability of the information provided by the undertaking – Burden of proof
(Council Regulation No 1225/2009, Art. 18)
(see para. 100)
6.
Common commercial policy – Protection against dumping – Anti-dumping proceeding – Rights of the defence – Right to be heard – Scope
(Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, Art. 41(2)(a))
(see paras 111-113)
7.
Common commercial policy – Protection against dumping – Dumping margin – Determination of the normal value – Recourse to the constructed value – Taking into account of selling, general and administrative costs – Losses relating to value differences arising from the revaluation of loans denominated in foreign currencies – Included – Conditions
(Council Regulation No 1225/2009, Art. 2(3) and (5); European Parliament and Council Regulation 2016/1036, Art. 2(5))
(see paras 136, 139, 142)
8.
Common commercial policy – Protection against dumping – Dumping margin – Determination of the export price – Recourse to a constructed export price – Conditions – Association between exporter and importer – Rebuttable presumption that the export price actually paid is not reliable – Burden of proof on the undertakings involved
(Council Regulation No 1225/2009, Art. 2(8) and (9); European Parliament and Council Regulation 2016/1036, Art. 2(9))
(see paras 150, 151)
9.
Common commercial policy – Protection against dumping – Dumping margin – Determination of the export price – Recourse to a constructed export price – Adjustments – Automatic application – Challenge to the level of adjustments – Burden of proof
(Council Regulation No 1225/2009, Art. 2(9); European Parliament and Council Regulation 2016/1036, Art. 2(9))
(see paras 152-156, 165)
10.
Common commercial policy – Protection against dumping – Injury – Factors to be taken into consideration – Impact of the dumping on EU production – Existence of factors and indicators showing a positive tendency – Fact not excluding the conclusion that significant injury caused to the EU industry – Commission’s obligation to make a convincing analysis of the positive and negative factors – Judicial review – Manifest error of assessment – Burden of proof
(Agreement on Implementation of Article VI of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (1994 Anti-Dumping Agreement), Art. 3.4; Council Regulation No 1225/2009, Art. 3(2), (3) and (5); European Parliament and Council Regulation 2016/1036, Art. 3(3))
(see paras 171-176, 205)
11.
Common commercial policy – Protection against dumping – Injury – Establishing a causal link – Obligations of the institutions – Taking into account of matters extraneous to the dumping – Relevance of such factors for establishing the causal link – Burden of proof on the parties invoking the illegality of the regulation imposing an anti-dumping duty
(Council Regulation No 1225/2009, Arts 3(5), 6 and 7)
(see paras 203, 204, 206, 207)
12.
Common commercial policy – Protection against dumping – Injury – Establishing a causal link – Obligations of the institutions – Taking into account of matters extraneous to the dumping – Measures which facilitate and promote imports – Precluded
(Council Regulation No 1225/2009, Art. 3(7))
(see para. 231)
13.
Common commercial policy – Protection against dumping – Injury – Establishing a causal link – Obligations of the institutions – Taking into account of matters extraneous to the dumping – No general obligation on the Commission to examine the effects of other causal factors collectively
(Agreement on Implementation of Article VI of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (1994 Anti-Dumping Agreement), Art. 3.5; Council Regulation No 1225/2009, Art. 3(7))
(see paras 236, 237)
14.
Common commercial policy – Protection against dumping – Injury – Reexamination after an earlier order acknowledging admissibility – Margin reasonably to be counted on in the absence of dumping
(Council Regulation No 1225/2009, Art. 9(4); European Parliament and Council Regulation 2016/1036, Art. 9(4))
(see paras 249, 252)
15.
Common commercial policy – Protection against dumping – Injury – Establishing a causal link – Obligations of the institutions – Calculation of the price undercutting of the imports at issue – Recourse to a constructed export price – Whether permissible
(Council Regulation No 1225/2009, Arts 2(9), 3(2) and (3) and 9(4))
(see paras 260-267)
16.
Common commercial policy – Protection against dumping – Injury – Establishing a causal link – Obligations of the institutions – Calculation of the price undercutting of the imports at issue – Obligation to make a fair comparison between the price of the product concerned and the price of the like product of the EU industry – Comparison to be made between prices obtained at the same level of trade
(Council Regulation No 1225/2009, Art. 3)
(see para. 268)
Re:
Application pursuant to Article 263 TFEU seeking the annulment of Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2016/1328 of 29 July 2016 imposing a definitive anti-dumping duty and collecting definitively the provisional duty imposed on imports of certain cold-rolled flat steel products originating in the People’s Republic of China and the Russian Federation (OJ 2016 L 210, p. 1).
Operative part
The Court:
1.
Dismisses the action;
2.
Orders PAO Severstal to bear, in addition to its own costs, those incurred by the European Commission;
3.
Orders Eurofer, European Steel Association, ASBL, to bear its own costs.