2007/424/EC: Commission Decision of 18 June 2007 accepting undertakings offered in connection with the anti-dumping proceeding concerning imports of certain prepared or preserved sweet corn in kernels originating in Thailand
Date: 2007-06-18
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: Thailand, anti-dumping duty, anti-dumping legislation, import, maize, originating product, preserved product

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Official Journal of the European Union

20.6.2007

(Acts adopted under the EC Treaty/Euratom Treaty whose publication is not obligatory)

II

DECISIONS

COMMISSION

COMMISSION DECISION

of 18 June 2007

accepting undertakings offered in connection with the anti-dumping proceeding concerning imports
of certain prepared or preserved sweet corn in kernels originating in Thailand

(2007/424/EC)

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

(3)

Having regard to the Treaty
Community,

establishing the European

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 384/96 of 22
December 1995 on protection against dumped imports from
countries not members of the European Community (1)
(the
‘basic Regulation’), and in particular Articles 8 and 9 thereof,

After consulting the Advisory Committee,

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

A. PROCEDURE

By Regulation (EC) No 1888/2006 (2), the Commission
imposed provisional anti-dumping duties on imports into
the Community of certain prepared or preserved sweet
corn in kernels originating in Thailand.

Following the adoption of the provisional anti-dumping
measures, the Commission continued the investigation of
dumping, injury, causation and Community interest. The
definitive findings and conclusions of the investigation
are set out in Council Regulation (EC) No 682/2007 (3)
imposing a definitive anti-dumping duty and collecting
definitively the provisional duty imposed on imports of
certain prepared or preserved sweet corn in kernels origi-
nating in Thailand.

(1) OJ L 56, 6.3.1996, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regulation

(EC) No 2117/2005 (OJ L 340, 23.12.2005, p. 17).

(2) OJ L 364, 20.12.2006, p. 68.
(3) See page 14 of this Official Journal.

(4)

(5)

(6)

The investigation confirmed the provisional findings of
injurious dumping relating to imports of certain prepared
corn in kernels originating in
or preserved sweet
Thailand.

B. UNDERTAKING

Subsequent to the adoption of provisional anti-dumping
measures,
in
Thailand offered price undertakings in accordance with
Article 8(1) of the basic Regulation.

two cooperating exporting producers

In these undertakings
the exporting producers have
offered to sell the product concerned, as defined in Regu-
lation (EC) No 682/2007, within a quantitative ceiling, at
or above price levels which eliminate the injurious effect
of dumping. The number of product types covered by
the undertakings is limited to the ones which were
exported by each exporting producer concerned in repre-
sentative quantities during the investigation period. A
different minimum import price for each product type
covered by the undertaking was offered, given that there
was a significant price variation among the different
product types during the investigation period.

The exporting producers offered to limit exports to the
Community under the undertakings to a certain quanti-
tative ceiling as during the investigation period they not
only sold the product concerned produced by them but
also the product concerned produced by other producers.
The quantitative ceiling for each exporting producer was
established at a level corresponding to the quantity
the own produced
exported to the Community of
product
investigation period.
Imports of the product concerned beyond the quanti-
tative ceiling or outside of the scope of the undertakings
will be subject to the applicable anti-dumping duty.

concerned during the

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(7)

(8)

(9)

(10)

covered by the undertaking to the

Moreover, the exporting producers offered not to sell the
product
same
customers in the European Community, to which they
sell other products in order to reduce the risk of price
violation by means of cross-compensation of the prices.

also

provide

exporting

producers will

the
The
Commission with regular
and detailed information
concerning their exports to the Community, meaning
that the undertakings can be monitored effectively by
the Commission. Furthermore,
the sales structure of
these companies is such that the Commission considers
that the risk of circumventing the agreed undertakings is
limited.

the prices of

Subsequent to the disclosure of the offered undertakings,
the complainant Community industry objected to these
undertakings offered. The Community industry argued
the product concerned are volatile
that
and therefore the product concerned is not suitable for
undertakings. Furthermore,
the Community industry
argued that because the exporting producers sold other
products together with the product covered by the
undertaking to the same customers in the European
Community there is a high risk of cross-compensation,
i.e. the products not covered by the undertaking may be
sold at artificially low prices in order to compensate the
minimum prices for the products covered by the under-
taking. For
the Community industry
concluded that undertakings would be an inappropriate
measure in this case.

these reasons,

the Community

It should be noted that the information on price volatility
by
submitted
industry was not
Indeed, the average prices practiced in the
conclusive.
Community by the Community industry producers
remained relatively flat during the period considered of
the present anti-dumping investigation. Although the
in some
Community industry submitted that prices
it
Member States were more volatile than in others,
acknowledged that
significantly
influenced by the dumped prices of the Thai exporters.
In this regard, it should be noted, as indicated in recital
5, that the offered minimum import prices and the anti-
dumping duties applicable beyond the quantitative ceiling
or outside of the scope of the undertakings eliminate the
injurious effect of dumping and may actually introduce
an element of stability in the market.

figures were

these

(11)

Regarding the risk of cross-compensation, as indicated in
recital 7, the undertakings contain a provision according
to which the exporting producers offered not
to sell
other products to the same customer in the European
Community, to which the product covered by the under-
taking is sold. Therefore, the offered undertakings suffi-
ciently limit such risk.

(12)

In view of the above, the undertakings offered by the
Thai exporting producers are acceptable.

(13)

(14)

(15)

In order to enable the Commission to monitor effectively
the companies' compliance with the undertakings, when
the request for release into free circulation is presented to
the relevant customs authority, exemption from the anti-
dumping duty will be conditional on (i) the presentation
containing at
of an undertaking invoice
the
elements
to Regulation (EC) No
listed in Annex II
682/2007; (ii) the fact that imported goods are manu-
factured,
shipped and invoiced directly by the said
independent customer in the
companies to the first
Community; and (iii) the fact that the goods declared
and presented to customs correspond precisely to the
description on the undertaking invoice. Where no such
invoice is presented, or when it does not correspond to
the product presented to customs, the appropriate rate of
anti-dumping duty shall instead be payable.

least

To further ensure the respect of
the undertakings,
importers have been made aware by the abovementioned
Council Regulation that
the
conditions provided for by that Regulation, or the with-
the
drawal by the Commission of
undertakings, may lead to the customs debt being
incurred for the relevant transactions.

the non-fulfillment of

the acceptance of

In the event of a breach or withdrawal of the under-
takings or in case of withdrawal of acceptance of the
the anti-dumping
undertakings by the Commission,
duty imposed in accordance with Article 9(4) of
the
basic Regulation shall automatically apply pursuant to
Article 8(9) of the basic Regulation,

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:

Article 1

The undertakings offered by the exporting producers mentioned
below,
anti-dumping proceeding
concerning imports of certain prepared or preserved sweet
corn in kernels originating in Thailand are hereby accepted.

in connection with the

Country

Company

Thailand

Malee Sampran Public Co., Ltd,
Abico Bldg. 401/1 Phaholyothin
Rd., Lumlookka,
Pathumthani 12130

Taric
Additional
Code

A790

Sun Sweet Co., Ltd, 9 M. 1,
Sanpatong, Chiangmai,
Thailand 50120

A792

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This Decision shall enter into force on the day following its publication in the Official Journal of the European
Union.

Article 2

Done at Brussels, 18 June 2007.

For the Commission

Peter MANDELSON
Member of the Commission