Council Regulation (EC) No 865/2008 of 27 August 2008 extending the suspension of the definitive anti-dumping duty imposed by Regulation (EC) No 1420/2007 on imports of silico-manganese originating in the People's Republic of China and Kazakhstan
Date: 2008-08-27
Institutions: Council of the European Union
Subjects: China, Kazakhstan, anti-dumping duty, anti-dumping legislation, ferro-alloy, import, manganese, originating product, semi-metal

4.9.2008

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 237/1

(Acts adopted under the EC Treaty/Euratom Treaty whose publication is obligatory)

I

REGULATIONS

COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) No 865/2008

of 27 August 2008

extending the suspension of the definitive anti-dumping duty imposed by Regulation (EC) No
1420/2007 on imports of silico-manganese originating in the People's Republic of China and
Kazakhstan

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

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 Article 14(4) thereof,

Having regard to the proposal submitted by the Commission,
after consulting the Advisory Committee,

Whereas:

A. PROCEDURE

(1)

(2)

(including

The Council, by Regulation (EC) No 1420/2007 (2),
imposed a definitive anti-dumping duty on imports of
silico-manganese
ferro-silico-manganese)
(SiMn) originating in the People's Republic of China
falling within CN codes
(PRC)
7202 30 00
code
(the product concerned). The rate of
8111 00 11 10)
the anti-dumping duty is 8,2 % and 6,5 % for imports
of the product concerned originating in the PRC and
Kazakhstan respectively.

and Kazakhstan,
and

ex 8111 00 11

(TARIC

2007/789/EC (3)

the
By Decision
Commission suspended the definitive
anti-dumping
duties for a period of nine months, with effect from
6 December 2007.

(the Decision),

suspended on the grounds that market conditions have
temporarily changed to an extent that injury would be
unlikely to resume as a result of such suspension,
provided that the Community industry has been given
an opportunity to comment and these comments have
been taken into account. Article 14(4) also specifies that
the suspension may be extended for a further period, not
exceeding one year, if the Council so decides, acting on a
further
from the Commission. Article 14(4)
proposal
specifies that the measures concerned may be reinstated
at any time if the reason for suspension is no longer
applicable.

(4)

(5)

Following the suspension of the definitive anti-dumping
duties, the Commission has,
in accordance with recital
13 of the Decision, continued to monitor the develop­
in particular with regard to the
ments on the market,
flow of imports and the prices of SiMn. In addition to
such analysis of the imports, a questionnaire was also
sent to co-operating Community producers requesting
monthly data on production, sales in volume and value
on the Community market as well as profitability for the
last quarter of 2007 and the first quarter of 2008.

than during the original

On the basis of the information gathered, it was estab­
lished that market prices of SiMn on the Community
market continued to be relatively high and significantly
higher
investigation period
(1 July 2005 to 30 June 2006). A continuous increase
can be observed from the third quarter of year 2006
with an average price of 622 EUR/MT,
through an
average of 1 051 EUR/MT in the third quarter of year
2007 and an average 1 189 EUR/MT in the first quarter
of year 2008. These trends were also observed for
imports of SiMn into the Community.

B. GROUNDS FOR EXTENDING OF THE SUSPENSION

(3)

Article 14(4) of the basic Regulation provides that, in the
Community interest, anti-dumping measures may be

(6)

(1) OJ L 56, 6.3.1996, p. 1.
(2) OJ L 317, 5.12.2007, p. 5.
(3) OJ L 317, 5.12.2007, p. 79.

As regards imports, between the period investigated for
the Decision suspending the measures (from 1 October
2006 to 30 September 2007) (the ‘Decision IP’) and the
period from 1 March 2007 to 29 February 2008 (the
‘Monitoring Period’) the market share of imports of SiMn
originating in the PRC and Kazakhstan increased only

L 237/2

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

4.9.2008

marginally by 0,2 percentage point to 10 % of the overall
Community consumption and remained below their
respective market share during the original investigation
period (10,4 %). EC consumption remained stable,
investi­
around 20 % higher than during the original
gation period.

(7) With regard to the Community industry,

its situation
remained improved when compared to the original inves­
tigation period (from 1 July 2005 to 30 June 2006). As
mentioned in recital 8 of
the Decision, between the
original
investigation period and the period from
1 October 2006 to 30 September 2007, the sales and
production volumes have increased by 15 % and 19 %
the Community
respectively and the profitability of
industry reached 42 % in the third quarter of year
2007. The new information gathered revealed that
between the Decision IP and the Monitoring Period, the
sales of the Community industry increased even further
by additional 9 % and their market share increased to
25,4 %. As a result of
the uninterrupted high price
levels of the SiMn on the EU market the profitability
of
the Community industry remained extraordinary,
even if it slightly dropped in the first quarter of year
2008 to 36 %, still substantially surpassing the 5 %
profit
level established as appropriate by the original
investigation.

(8)

As indicated in recitals 157 to 163 of Regulation (EC) No
1420/2007 and referred to in recital 9 of the Decision,
the imposition of measures in question was expected to
have some negative, although limited, effects for users in
the form of cost increases arising out of the possible
need to arrange new or alternative supplies. Considering
the temporary change in market conditions and that
consequently the Community industry is currently not
suffering injury, any negative effect on users could
continue to be eliminated by extending the suspension
of the measures. Consequently, it can be concluded that
extending the suspension is in the overall Community
interest.

C. CONSULTATION OF COMMUNITY INDUSTRY

(9)

Pursuant to Article 14(4) of the basic Regulation, the
Commission has informed the Community industry of
its intention to extend the suspension of
the anti-
in question. The Community
dumping measures
industry has been given an opportunity to comment

and did not oppose
dumping measures.

the

suspension of

the anti-

D. CONCLUSION

(10) Given the above, it is considered that the market is in a
substantially similar situation as when the measures
where suspended.
Indeed, considering the temporary
change in market conditions, and in particular the high
level of prices of SiMn existing on the Community
market, which is far higher than the injurious price
level found in the original investigation, it is considered
that
the injury linked to the imports of the product
concerned originating in the PRC and Kazakhstan is
unlikely to resume as a result of the extension of the
suspension.

(11)

(12)

the suspension of

it is therefore
In view of the aforementioned findings,
the anti-dumping
proposed that
measures on imports of
silico-manganese (including
ferro-silico-manganese) be extended for a further period
of one year pursuant to Article 14(4) of the basic Regu­
lation.

The Commission will continue to monitor the develop­
ment of imports and the prices of the product concerned.
Should a situation arise at any time in which increased
the product concerned
volumes at dumped prices of
from the PRC and Kazakhstan resume and consequently
cause injury to the Community industry, the Commission
will
to reinstate the anti-
dumping duty, taking into account the substantive rules
that govern an injury assessment. An interim review
pursuant to Article 11(3) of the basic Regulation may
be initiated, if appropriate,

take the necessary steps

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

The suspension of the definitive anti-dumping duty imposed by
Commission Decision 2007/789/EC is hereby extended until
6 September 2009.

Article 2

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

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.

Done at Brussels, 27 August 2008.

For the Council
The President

B. KOUCHNER