Judgment of the General Court (Seventh Chamber) of 19 March 2015 — City Cycle Industries v Council

(Case T‑413/13)

‛Dumping — Imports of bicycles consigned from Indonesia, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Tunisia — Extension to such imports of the definitive anti-dumping duty imposed on imports of bicycles originating in China — Circumvention — Failure to cooperate — Article 13 of Regulation (EC) No 1225/2009 — Obligation to state reasons — Error of assessment — Equal treatment — Access to the file’

1. Judicial proceedings — Intervention — Objection of inadmissibility not raised by the defendant — Inadmissibility (Statute of the Court of Justice, Art. 40, fourth para.; Rules of Procedure of the General Court, Art. 116(3)) (see paras 42, 43)

2. Judicial proceedings — Introduction of new pleas during the proceedings — Conditions — New plea — Concept — Reply to a question put by the General Court as a measure of organisation of procedure — Not included (Rules of Procedure of the General Court, Art. 48) (see para. 47)

3. Common commercial policy — Protection against dumping — Course of the investigation — Powers of the Commission — Limits — Obligation of the undertakings concerned by a complaint to cooperate — Scope (Council Regulation No 1225/2009) (see paras 64, 81)

4. Common commercial policy — Protection against dumping — Circumvention — Determination of circumvention — Delivery of the product subject to anti-dumping measures via third countries — Criteria for assessment — Circumstances not permitting the conclusion that redelivery has taken place (Council Regulation No 1225/2009, Art. 13(1), second para., and (2)) (see para. 99)

5. Common commercial policy — Protection against dumping — Course of the investigation — Use of the information available where the undertaking refuses cooperation — Conditions — Alternative character (Council Regulation No 1225/2009, Art. 18(1)) (see para. 108)

6. Common commercial policy — Protection against dumping — Course of the investigation — Use of the information available where the undertaking refuses cooperation — Conditions — False or misleading information — No need for intentional conduct (Council Regulation No 1225/2009, Art. 18(1)) (see para. 117)

7. Common commercial policy — Protection against dumping — Course of the investigation — Use of the information available where the undertaking refuses cooperation — Conditions — Reception of a verification visit — Circumstance not in itself implying a finding of loyal and diligent cooperation (Council Regulation No 1225/2009, Art. 18(1)) (see paras 118, 119)

8. Common commercial policy — Protection against dumping — Course of the investigation — Account taken of information not the best in all respects — Conditions — Cumulative nature (Council Regulation No 1225/2009, Art. 18(3)) (see para. 120)

9. Acts of the institutions — Statement of reasons — Obligation — Scope — Decision to use the information available in the case of refusal of cooperation by the undertaking concerned by an anti-dumping investigation — No obligation on the institutions to demonstrate that they used the best possible information (Art. 296 TFEU; Council Regulation No 1225/2009, Art. 18(1)) (see paras 125, 132)

10. EU law — Principles — Proportionality — Whether a measure is proportionate to its aim — Criteria for assessment (see para. 137)

11. Common commercial policy — Protection against dumping — Anti-dumping proceeding — Rights of defence — Right to be heard — Right of access to non-confidential documents relating to the proceedings (Council Regulation No 1225/2009, Art. 6(7)) (see paras 151-153)

12. Common commercial policy — Protection against dumping — Anti-dumping proceeding — Relevance of procedural irregularities to the legality of a regulation imposing anti-dumping duties — Conditions — Need for the undertaking concerned to alert the institutions to potential problems arising from procedural irregularities (see paras 154, 155, 158)

13. EU law — Principles — Equal treatment — Concept (see para. 164)

14. Common commercial policy — Protection against dumping — Circumvention — Proof of the existence of dumping in liaison with the normal values established at an initial investigation — Determination of the export price — Obligation to use the most appropriate method (Council Regulation No 1225/2009, Art. 13(1)) (see paras 168, 169, 171, 172)

Re:

APPLICATION for the partial annulment of Council Implementing Regulation (EU) No 501/2013 of 29 May 2013 extending the definitive anti-dumping duty imposed by Implementing Regulation (EU) No 990/2011 on imports of bicycles originating in the People’s Republic of China to imports of bicycles consigned from Indonesia, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Tunisia, whether declared as originating in Indonesia, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Tunisia or not (OJ 2013 L 153, p. 1).

Operative part

The Court:

1. Annuls Article 1(1) and (3) of Council Implementing Regulation (EU) No 501/2013 of 29 May 2013 extending the definitive anti-dumping duty imposed by Implementing Regulation (EU) No 990/2011 on imports of bicycles originating in the People’s Republic of China to imports of bicycles consigned from Indonesia, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Tunisia, whether declared as originating in Indonesia, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Tunisia or not, to the extent that it concerns City Cycle Industries;

2. Orders the Council of the European Union to pay the costs incurred by City Cycle Industries and to bear its own costs;