REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL 36th Annual Report from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament on the EU's Anti-Dumping, Anti-Subsidy and Safeguard activities (2017)
Date: 2018-07-31
Institutions: Directorate-General for Trade and Economic Security, European Commission
Subjects: anti-dumping duty, anti-dumping measure, anti-subsidy proceeding, countervailing charge, import (EU), import restriction, originating product, surveillance concerning imports, trade dispute

EN 

  EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 31.7.2018  COM(2018) 561 final  REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL 36th Annual Report from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament  on the EU's Anti-Dumping, Anti-Subsidy and Safeguard activities (2017) {SWD(2018) 392 final}  
 
 
REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND 
THE COUNCIL 

36th Annual Report from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament  
on the EU's Anti-Dumping, Anti-Subsidy and Safeguard activities (2017) 

INTRODUCTION 

This  Report  describes  the  European  Union's  anti-dumping,  anti-subsidy  and 
safeguard activities during 2017. It has been prepared pursuant to the provisions of 
Article  23  of  Regulation  (EU)  2016/1036  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the 
Council  on  protection  against  dumped  imports  from  countries  not  members  of  the 
European Union (‘basic AD Regulation’), Article 34 of Regulation (EU) 2016/1037 
of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  on  protection  against  subsidised 
imports from countries not members of the European Union (‘basic AS Regulation’) 
and Article 23 of Regulation (EU) 2015/478 of the European Parliament and of the 
Council on common rules for imports.  

2017 was a milestone year for trade defence policy in the EU. First, on 20 December 
2017,  a  change  of  the  basic  anti-dumping  and  anti-subsidy  regulations  entered  into 
force,  introducing  a  new  methodology  for  calculating  normal  value  in  situations 
where prices and costs in the market of the exporting country are distorted. The new 
regulation  was  followed  by  the  publication  of  a  comprehensive  country  report 
describing  significant  distortions  in  China.1  (See  detailed  description  in  Section  5 
below). 

Secondly,  in  December  2017,  EU  co-legislators  achieved  a  breakthrough  on  a 
separate  legislative  proposal  to  modernise  the  EU's  trade  defence  instruments  and 
found an agreement on a broad range of topics (e.g. accelerated investigations, better 
application  of  the  lesser-duty  rule,  better  transparency  by  providing  pre-disclosure 
prior  to  provisional  measures,  recognition  of  the  role  of  trade  unions).  This 
agreement paved the way for the entry into force of this long-awaited legislation on 8 
June  2018.  These  new  rules  apply  to  all  investigations  initiated  after  that  date. 
Together both sets of amendments to the basic AD and AS Regulations constitute the 
first major overhaul of the EUs anti-dumping and anti-subsidy legislation since 1995. 

It has to be noted that that the law that entered into force on 20 December 2017 also 
changed  the  Commission's  annual  reporting  requirements.  Given  that  none  of  the 
EUs  anti-dumping  and  anti-subsidy  proceedings  in  2017  were  affected  by  these 
legislative changes, this report provides no information in that regard. This report is 
accompanied,  as  in  previous  years,  by  a  Commission  Staff  Working  Document, 
together with detailed annexes, providing, among others, a comprehensive overview 
of the existing legislation, terminology and procedures. 

1  

The  next  country  report  on  market  distortions  for  the  purpose  of  trade  defence  investigations  will 
concern Russia.  

1 

 
 
 
                                                 
Case  work  by  the  Commission  in  2017  remained  significant,  with  provisional  and 
definitive  measures  imposed  in  similar  numbers  to  those  in  2016  and  with  a  much 
increased  activity  in  terms  of  review  of  existing  measures.  The  Commission  has 
continued to use all available tools under the applicable legal framework to give the 
European industry effective relief from unfairly traded imports. 

Moreover,  many  of  the  cases  that  the  Commission  investigated  were  particularly 
challenging  because  of  their  high  complexity  and  the  resources  that  had  to  be 
mobilised. The Staff Working Document gives a detailed account of the work done. 

The present Report and the Staff Working Document are also available to the public 
at http://ec.europa.eu/trade/issues/respectrules/anti_dumping/legis/index_en.htm. 

1. 

OVERVIEW  OF  ANTI-DUMPING,  ANTI-SUBSIDY  AND  SAFEGUARD  INVESTIGATIONS 
AND MEASURES 

1.1. 

General 

At  the  end  of  2017,  the  EU  had  97  definitive  anti-dumping  measures  (which  were 
extended2  in  29  cases)  and  13  countervailing  measures  in  force  (which  were 
extended in three cases).3 This constitutes a slight increase (4%) as compared to the 
previous year. 

Investigative work remained at a high level, reaching nearly that of 2016. The work 
consisted mainly of a high number of work-intensive investigations on new cases as 
well  as  of  an  increasing  number  of  reviews.  At  the  end  of  2017,  a  total  of  46 
investigations  were  ongoing,  as  well  as  four  refund  investigations  that  cover  61 
separate refund requests. 

In 2017, 0,31% of total imports into the EU were affected by anti-dumping (AD) or 
anti-subsidy  (AS)  measures.  Although  comprehensive  data  are  not  available,  the 
expiry  review  investigations  show  in  many  cases  that  the  imposition  of  measures 
leads to a significant reduction of the imports of the product concerned. 

A  detailed  overview  is  given  in  the  Staff  Working  Document  accompanying  this 
report. The references to the Annexes of the Staff Working Document can be found 
beside the titles.  

1.2. 

New investigations (see Annexes A through E) 

In 2017, 11 new investigations were initiated (five concerned the chemical and allied 
sectors),  and  there  were  two  re-openings  of  cases  to  implement  judicial  findings. 
Provisional  duties  were  imposed  in  two  proceedings.  A  total  of  12  cases  were 
concluded  with  the  imposition  of  definitive  duties,  while  two  investigations  were 
concluded without measures.  

2  

3 

Measures  have  been  extended  to  other  third  countries  if  circumvention  in  these  countries  had  been 
found. 
The measures are counted per product and country concerned. 

2 

 
 
 
                                                 
1.3. 

Review investigations 

Review  investigations  continue  to  represent  a  substantial  part  of  the  work  of  the 
Commission  Trade  Defence  services.  Table  1  in  the  Staff  Working  Document 
provides statistical information for the years 2013-2017. 

1.3.1.  Expiry reviews (see Annex F) 

Articles  11(2)  of  the  basic  AD  and  18  of  the  basic  AS  Regulations  provide  for  the 
expiry  of measures after  five years, unless an expiry review demonstrates that they 
should be maintained in their original form.  

During  2017,  nine  expiry  review  investigations  were  initiated  and  as  many  as  19 
expiry reviews were concluded with a confirmation of the duty for a further period of 
five years. One expiry review was concluded by the termination of measures. During 
2017,  five  measures  (all  anti-dumping)  expired  automatically,  i.e.  without  review, 
following their five-year duration. 

1.3.2. 

Interim reviews (see Annex G) 

Articles  11(3)  of  the  basic  AD  and  19  of  the  basic  AS  Regulations  provide  for  the 
review of measures during their period of validity in order to adapt them to address 
changed  circumstances.  Reviews  can  be  limited  to  dumping/subsidization  or  injury 
aspects. 

During  2017,  a  total  of  ten interim  reviews  were  initiated. One  interim  review  was 
concluded with an amendment of duty and one terminated without the amendment of 
the measures.  

1.3.3.  “Other” interim reviews (see Annex H) 

Two  'other'  reviews,  i.e.  not  falling  within  the  reviews  ordinarily  commenced 
pursuant to Articles 11(3) of the basic AD or 19 of the basic AS Regulations, were 
initiated  in  2017.  There  were  five  such  reviews  concluded  during  2017.  These 
reviews usually concern the implementation of court rulings. 

1.3.4.  New exporter reviews (see Annex I) 

Articles  11(4)  of  the  basic  AD  and  20  of  the  basic  AS  Regulations  respectively 
provide  for  a  “newcomer”  and  “accelerated”  review  in  order  to  establish  an 
individual  dumping  margin  or  an  individual  countervailing  duty  for  new  exporters 
located in the exporting country in question which did not export the product during 
the  investigation  period.  Such  exporters  have  to  show  that  they  are  genuine  new 
exporters  and  that  they  have  actually  started  to  export  to  the  EU  after  the 
investigation  period.  As  such,  an  individual  duty,  which  is  usually  lower  than  the 
country-wide duty, can be calculated for them.  

In 2017, six new exporter reviews were initiated. No such review was concluded.  

1.3.5.  Absorption investigations (see Annex J) 

Where  there  is  sufficient  information  showing  that,  after  the  original  investigation 
period  and  prior  to,  or  following  the  imposition  of  measures,  export  prices  have 
decreased or that there has been no or insufficient movement in the resale prices or 
subsequent selling prices of the imported product in the EU, an "absorption" review 
may  be  opened  to  examine  whether  the  measure  has  had  effects  on  the  above-

3 

 
 
mentioned  prices.  Dumping  margins  may  as  such  be  recalculated  and  the  duty 
increased to take account of such lower export prices. The possibility of "absorption" 
reviews  is  included  in  Articles  12  of  the  basic  AD  and  19(3)  of  the  basic  AS 
Regulations. 

In 2017, no anti-absorption reviews were initiated. One such review was concluded 
without an increase of the duty. 

1.3.6.  Circumvention investigations (see Annex K) 

The possibility of investigations being re-opened in circumstances where evidence is 
brought to show that measures are being circumvented is provided for in Articles 13 
of the basic AD and 23 of the basic AS Regulations. 

In 2017, three such investigations were initiated. There was one anti-circumvention 
investigation  concluded  with  an  extension  of  the  measures,  and  one  without 
extension.  

1.4. 

Safeguard investigations (see Annex L) 

During 2017, there was no safeguard investigation opened or measures imposed.   

2. 

ENFORCEMENT OF AD/AS MEASURES 

2.1. 

Follow-up of measures 

Follow-up activities concerning measures in force were centred on four main areas: 
(1)  to  pre-empt  fraud;  (2)  to  monitor  trade  flows  and  market  developments;  (3)  to 
improve  the  effectiveness  with  the  appropriate  instruments  and  (4)  to  react  to 
irregular  practices.  These  activities  enabled  the  Commission  -  in  cooperation  with 
Member  States  -  to  pro-actively  ensure  the  proper  enforcement  of  trade  defence 
measures in the European Union.  

2.2.  Monitoring of undertakings (see Annexes M and Q) 

Monitoring  of  undertakings  forms  part  of  the  enforcement  activities,  given  that 
undertakings  are  a  form  of  AD  or  AS  measures.  They  are  accepted  by  the 
Commission  if  it  is  satisfied,  after  an  investigation,  that  they  can  effectively 
eliminate the injurious effects of dumping or subsidisation. 

At  the  beginning  of  2017,  there  were  102  undertakings  in  force.  During  2017,  the 
undertakings of five companies were withdrawn as it was established that breaches 
had occurred or that the monitoring of the undertakings became impracticable. The 
undertakings  of  seven  companies  were  also  withdrawn  at  the  request  of  these 
companies.  The  undertakings  of  87  companies  were  repealed.  No  new  undertaking 
was  accepted.  This  brought  the total  number  of  undertakings  in  force  at  the  end  of 
2017 to three.  

3. 

REFUNDS  

Articles 11(8) of the basic AD and 21(1) of the basic AS Regulations allow importers 
to request the reimbursement of the relevant collected duties where it is shown that 
the dumping/subsidy margin has been eliminated or reduced to a level below that of 
the duty in force. 

4 

 
 
During  2017,  75  new  refund  requests  were  submitted.  At  the  end  of  2017,  four 
refund investigations were on-going that cover 61 requests. In 2017, 26 Commission 
Implementing  Decisions  granting  partial  refund  or  rejecting  refund  requests  were 
adopted. 

4. 

TDI MODERNISATION  

In  April  2013,  the  Commission  adopted  a  proposal  to  modernise  the  EU’s  trade 
defence instruments (‘TDI’). After a long legislative process, on 5 December 2017, 
the Council and the European Parliament reached an agreement on the Commission's 
proposal that subsequently entered into force on 8 June 2018.  

This is a major step forward, as it is – together with the new calculation methodology 
(see  below  section  5  of  this  Report)  –  the  first  major  change  of  these  instruments 
since the conclusion of the WTO Uruguay Round. They make the EU's trade defence 
instruments  more  effective,  transparent  and  more  adapted  to  face  the  challenges  of 
the  global  economy.  At  the  same  time,  they  bring  these  instruments  closer  to  the 
needs  of  smaller  companies.  They  benefit  EU  producers  but  also  take  into  account 
the interests of importers and downstream users who depend on imports.  

improved 

legislation  are:  an 

Among the most important elements of the modernised EU's anti-dumping and anti-
subsidy 
injury  margin  calculation  method,  a 
reconstruction of the non-injurious price calculation which will include a minimum 
profit of 6%, a shorter timeframe for the imposition of provisional measures, an early 
warning  on  the  imposition  of  provisional  anti-dumping  and  anti-subsidy  measures, 
additional support for EU SMEs, an adaptation of the EU's "lesser duty rule" so as to 
take  into  account  the  existence  of  raw  materials  price  distortions,  as  well  as  a  new 
role for social and environmental aspects in trade defence proceedings. 

5. 

2017 AMENDMENT OF THE EU'S AD AND AS LEGISLATION  

On 9 November 2016, the Commission adopted a proposal to amend the EU's anti-
dumping  and  anti-subsidy  regulations  with  the  aim  of  introducing  a  new 
methodology  to  calculate  the  normal  value  to  better  address  state-induced  market 
distortions  in  third  countries  and  to  strengthen  the  anti-subsidy  instrument.  These 
amendments  to  the  EU's  basic  AD  and  AS  Regulations  entered  into  force  on  20 
December 2017. 

The  new  methodology  seeks  to  address  significant  distortions  induced  by  the  State 
and  to  tackle  new  economic  realities  that  have  arisen  over  the  last  years.  These 
distortions can exist in a country as a whole or in a given sector. In this respect, the 
new  methodology  is  country-neutral  and  applicable  to  all  WTO  members.  The 
legislation makes it clear that the adoption of a new dumping methodology is without 
prejudice to the treatment of any country as a non-market economy. Where it will be 
established that it is not appropriate to use domestic prices or costs in a third country 
due to state-induced distortions in its economy, the new methodology will apply to 
calculate a product's normal value. 

In  order  to  'trigger'  the  application  of  the  new  methodology,  it  must  be  established 
that  it  is  not  appropriate  to  use  domestic  prices  and  costs  due  to  significant 

5 

 
 
 
distortions  in  the  exporting  country.  In  determining  the  existence  of  distortions, 
several  criteria  will  be  considered,  such  as  State  policies  and  influence,  the 
widespread  presence  of  State-owned  enterprises,  discrimination  in  favour  of 
domestic companies, or the lack of independence of the financial sector.  

Reports  prepared  by  the  Commission  on  countries/sectors  where  distortions  are 
identified may be used by the EU industry which will be able to rely on the evidence 
contained  therein  to  make  their  case  concerning  countries  where  distortions  exist. 
The Commission will select the countries on which to prepare reports by reference to 
their  relative  importance  in  the  EU's  overall  anti-dumping  activity  as  well  as 
indications  that  significant  distortions  may  exist.  On  the  day  the  new  legislation 
entered into force, DG Trade published on its website a report on market distortions 
in the Chinese economy, the country most subject to the EU's anti-dumping activity. 
The Commission also announced that the next country report will concern Russia. 

The  new  rules  apply  to  all  new  investigations  and  expiry  reviews  initiated  after  20 
December  2017.  Interim  reviews  initiated  after  that  date  will  be  based  on  the  new 
methodology if the measure itself is based on the new methodology. If the measure 
subject  to  review  is  still  based  on  the  methodology  used  previously,  this 
methodology will continue to apply to any interim review before the initiation of the 
first expiry review after 20 December 2017. 

The  new  legislation  has  also  strengthened  the  anti-subsidy  instrument  to  allow  the 
Commission  to  better  capture  the  full  magnitude  of  subsidisation  by  making  it 
possible  to  address  also  subsidies  which  were  identified  only  in  the  course  of  an 
investigation. 

6. 

COUNTRY-WIDE MARKET ECONOMY STATUS (MES) 

On  the  occasion  of  the  entry  into  force  of  the  new  calculation  methodology  on  20 
December 2017, the provision dealing with non-market economy countries (Article 
2(7) of the basic AD Regulation) has been changed. Its scope now covers only non-
WTO members that feature on Annex  1 of Regulation 2015/7554. In brief, in these 
cases the normal value is calculated on the basis of costs and prices found in a so-
called 'analogue' country. 

7. 

INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION ACTIVITIES/ BILATERAL CONTACTS  

7.1. 

Small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) 

During  2017,  the  SME  Helpdesk  continued  to  deal  with  requests  for  information 
relating  to  the  trade  defence  instruments.  The  assistance  offered  to  SMEs  by  the 
Helpdesk  covered  specific  case-related  queries  as  well  as  provisions  on  both 

4  

Regulation (EU) 2015/755 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2015 on common 
rules for imports from certain third countries, OJ L 123, 19.5.2015, p. 33. 

6 

 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
procedural  and  substantial  elements  of  anti-dumping  and  anti-subsidy  proceedings. 
This helpdesk was set up in 2004 as a response to the difficulties which SMEs face, 
owing  to  their  small  size  and  resource  constraints,  when  dealing  with  the 
complexities of trade defence investigations. 

7.2. 

Bilateral contacts/information activities – industry and third countries 

Explaining  the  legislation  and  practice  of  the  EU's  trade  defence  activity  and 
exchanging views on third country practices is an important part of the work of the 
TDI  services.  A  number  of  bilateral  meetings  to  exchange  best  practices  with  TDI 
officials from the U.S., China, Japan and Korea took place in 2017. 

During 2017, the trade defence services maintained contacts with practically all key 
stakeholder organisations affected by trade defence, including regular meetings with 
Business  Europe  as  well  as  sectoral  associations.  One  of  the  key  topics  of  these 
meetings was to discuss the legislative changes concerning TDI. 

8. 

JUDICIAL REVIEW: DECISIONS RENDERED BY THE COURT OF JUSTICE (CJ) AND THE 
GENERAL COURT (GC)  

In  2017,  the  General  Court  ('GC')  and  the  Court  of  Justice  ('CJ')  rendered  29 
judgments in  the areas of anti-dumping  or  anti-subsidy. 15 judgments were  handed 
down by the GC. 12 concerned appeals of GC rulings which were decided by the CJ. 
Last but not least, the CJ also rendered two preliminary rulings in the TDI field. 

Twenty new cases were lodged in 2017 (compared to 34 in 2016, 20 in 2015, 37 in 
2014, 33 in 2013, 23 in 2012, and 16 in 2011). Eleven of these were lodged before 
the GC (ten actions for annulment and one application for taxation of costs) and nine 
before the CJ (six appeals and three preliminary rulings). 

A list of the AD/AS cases before the GC and the CJ still pending at the end of 2017 
is presented in Annex S of the Staff Working Document. 

9. 

ACTIVITIES IN THE FRAMEWORK OF THE WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION (WTO) 

9.1. 

Dispute settlement in the field of AD, AS and SFGs  

The WTO provides for a rigorous procedure for the settlement of disputes between 
WTO Members concerning the application of the WTO agreements. 

On 5 September 2017, the Appellate Body circulated its report in the case against the 
EU on Anti-Dumping Measures on Imports of Certain Fatty Alcohols from Indonesia 
(DS442).  The  Appellate  Body  essentially  upheld  the  Panel's  finding  that  Indonesia 
had  failed  to  demonstrate  that  the  EU  acted  inconsistently  with  Article  2.4  of  the 
WTO Anti-Dumping Agreement (ADA). 

On  6  July  2017,  the  Panel  issued  its  report  in  the  case  against  the  EU  concerning 
Countervailing  Measures  on  Certain  Polyethylene  Terephthalate  from  Pakistan 
(DS486). The Panel essentially found that the EU, by finding that the entire amount 
of the remitted duties was a countervailable subsidy under the SCM agreement, acted 
inconsistently with Article 3.1(a) of the SCM agreement. 

7 

 
 
 
On 12 December 2016, the People's Republic of China requested consultations with 
the EU on the provisions of the EU Basic anti-dumping regulation which govern the 
establishment  of  normal  value  in  relation  to  imports  from  China  (DS516).  A  first 
round of consultations was held on 23 January 2017 and the panel was subsequently 
established on 3 April 2017. 

On 23 October 2017, the EU informed the Dispute Settlement Body (DSB) that the 
adoption of a regulation5 amending the WTO-inconsistent anti-dumping measures on 
biodiesel ensured the full implementation of the DSB recommendations and rulings 
in  case  against  EU  on  Anti-Dumping  Measures  on  Imports  of  Biodiesel  from 
Argentina (DS473).  

In 2017, dispute settlement proceedings were also ongoing in the case concerning the 
EU Anti-Dumping Measures on Imports of Biodiesel from Indonesia (DS480). The 
Panel  circulated  its  report  to  Members  on  25  January  2018.  For  more  detailed 
information  please  refer  to  section  4.2.3  of  the  Staff  Working  Document 
accompanying this Report ("Other" reviews). 

9.2. 

Other WTO activities  

In the course of 2017, intensive negotiations on fisheries subsidies were conducted in 
Geneva.  While  no  substantive  outcome  was  achieved  at  the  11th  WTO  Ministerial 
Conference  that  took  place  in  December  2017  in  Buenos  Aires,  WTO  members 
agreed on a work programme that will form a basis for further negotiations in view 
of adopting a comprehensive agreement at the next Ministerial Conference in 2019. 
Members also committed to fully respect their notification obligations in the area of 
fisheries subsidies.  

In  2017,  the  EU  submitted  a  new  notification  of  subsidies  in  line  with  its  WTO 
obligations covering the years 2015 and 2016. The notification included all subsidies 
granted  at  EU  level  as  well  as  subsidies  granted  by  each  of  the  Member  States.  In 
October  2017,  a  review  of  the  submission  began  in  the  special  session  of  the 
Subsidies  and  Countervailing  Committee  which  will  continue  into  2018. In  the 
special Committee, Commission services also participated in the continued review of 
the 2015 subsidy notification at the meetings held in April and October 2017.  

In  addition,  the  EU  participated  in  the  work  of  the  regular  Subsidies  and 
Countervailing Committee in April and October 2017. In April, the EU (along with 
Canada,  Japan  and  the  U.S.)  presented  a  paper  in  the  WTO  Subsidies  and 
Countervailing Committee regarding the role of subsidies as a contributor to excess 
capacity in various sectors of economic activity. The EU also organized a seminar on 
the same issue in October 2017 at the WTO and presented the main conclusions of 
that  seminar  at  the  October  session  of  the Committee.  In  addition  to  these 
discussions, the problem of poor transparency on subsidies by many WTO members 
was also addressed. 

5  

Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/1578 of 18 September 2017 amending Implementing 
Regulation (EU) No 1194/2013. (OJ L 239, 19.9.2017, p. 9) 

8 

 
 
 
 
                                                 
Moreover,  the  EU  participated  actively  in  the  regular  work  of  the  WTO  Anti-
Dumping and Safeguards Committees answering questions on EU cases and raising 
issues  of  concern  on  trade  defence  activity  by  other  countries  which  affect  EU 
exporters.  

In the Informal Group on Anti-Circumvention, in April 2017, the EU trade defence 
services made a presentation on the EU's legislation and practice in dealing with the 
circumvention  of  anti-dumping  measures. The  Commission  services  also  actively 
participated in both sessions of the Anti-dumping Working Group on Implementation 
(WGI). 

10. 

CONCLUSION 

TDI activity in 2017 was intense. The number of investigations remained at a high 
level.  European  industry,  suffering  from  dumped  imports,  in  some  instances 
exacerbated  by  persisting  industrial  overcapacities,  as  well  as  the  pervasive  use  of 
subsidies in certain countries, continued to call on the Commission to provide relief 
by  making  use  of  EU's  trade  defence  instruments.  The  number  of  provisional  and 
definitive measures imposed remained fairly stable as compared to 2016. However, 
the  number  of  review  investigations  initiated  increased  substantially,  by  75%  over 
the  previous  year.  As  was  the  case  with  previous  years,  no  safeguard  action  was 
taken by the EU. 

2017 stood out in terms of legislative activity. It led to the introduction of a new anti-
dumping  methodology  for  calculating  normal  value  in  investigations  relating  to 
countries  where  serious  market  distortions  occur,  as  well  as  a  strengthened  anti-
subsidy instrument. The new regulation was followed by the publication of a report 
on significant market distortions existing in China. Last but not least, 2017 paved the 
way  for  the  modernisation  of  EU  trade  defence  instruments.  Taken  together,  these 
amendments  to  the  basic  Regulations  constitute a  major  overhaul  of  the  EU's  trade 
defence policy and instruments for the benefit of all stakeholders. 

This  has  served  to  ensure  that  the  EU  is  equipped  with  sufficiently  robust  trade 
defence instruments to deal with distortions in the global economy.  

9