CELEX: 51983PC0151
Language: en
Date: 1983-03-15
Title: Proposal for a COUNCIL DECISION terminating the anti-dumping proceeding in respect of imports of acrylonitrile originating in the United States of America (83/ /EEC) (submitted to the Council by the Commission)

ARCHIVES HISTORIQUES
DE LA COMMISSION
COLLECTION RELIEE DES
DOCUMENTS "COM"
COM (83) 151
Vol. 1983/0043
 ---pagebreak--- Disclaimer
Conformément au règlement (CEE, Euratom) n° 354/83 du Conseil du 1er février 1983
concernant l'ouverture au public des archives historiques de la Communauté économique
européenne et de la Communauté européenne de l'énergie atomique (JO L 43 du 15.2.1983,
p. 1), tel que modifié par le règlement (CE, Euratom) n° 1700/2003 du 22 septembre 2003
(JO L 243 du 27.9.2003, p. 1), ce dossier est ouvert au public. Le cas échéant, les documents
classifiés présents dans ce dossier ont été déclassifiés conformément à l'article 5 dudit
règlement.
In accordance with Council Regulation (EEC, Euratom) No 354/83 of 1 February 1983
concerning the opening to the public of the historical archives of the European Economic
Community and the European Atomic Energy Community (OJ L 43, 15.2.1983, p. 1), as
amended by Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1700/2003 of 22 September 2003 (OJ L 243,
27.9.2003, p. 1), this file is open to the public. Where necessary, classified documents in this
file have been declassified in conformity with Article 5 of the aforementioned regulation.
In Übereinstimmung mit der Verordnung (EWG, Euratom) Nr. 354/83 des Rates vom 1.
Februar 1983 über die Freigabe der historischen Archive der Europäischen
Wirtschaftsgemeinschaft und der Europäischen Atomgemeinschaft (ABI. L 43 vom 15.2.1983,
S. 1), geändert durch die Verordnung (EG, Euratom) Nr. 1700/2003 vom 22. September 2003
(ABI. L 243 vom 27.9.2003, S. 1), ist diese Datei der Öffentlichkeit zugänglich. Soweit
erforderlich, wurden die Verschlusssachen in dieser Datei in Übereinstimmung mit Artikel 5
der genannten Verordnung freigegeben.
 ---pagebreak--- COMMISSION OF THE E U R O P E A N COMMUNITIES
                                                           COM(83) 151           final
                                                           B r u s s e l s , 15 March 1983
                                  Proposal          f o ra
                                  COUNCIL DECISION
             terminating the anti-dumping proceeding                          i n respect of
              imports  of a c r y l o n i t r i l e  originating          i n the United   States
                                        of     America
                                       (83/         /EEC)
                   (submitted     t o t h e C o u n c i l by t h e Commission)
 COM(83) 151 final
 ---pagebreak---                                           EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM
1.       On 3 A p r i l 1982,           the Commission              p u b l i s h e d a n o t i c e of the        initiation
o f an a n t i - d u m p i n g      p r o c e e d i n g i n respect of imports of a c r y l o n i t r i l e
o r i g i n a t i n g i n the United States of                       America.
2.       The i n v e s t i g a t i o n r e v e a l e d t h a t , d e p e n d i n g      on t h e y e a r , 90% t o 9 7 % o f
t h e s e i m p o r t s e n t e r e d t h e Community as p r o c e s s i n g t r a f f i c                (imports         under
c o v e r o f customs document T 1 ) .
The p o s i t i o n a d o p t e d w i t h r e g a r d t o t e m p o r a r y           i m p o r t s was o b v i o u s l y t h e
same as t h a t a d o p t e d           i n an e a r l i e r c a s e w h e r e s u c h i m p o r t s had t o be t a k e n
i n t o account f o r the purpose of d e t e r m i n i n g the i n c i d e n c e of dumping, i . e .
t h e VAM        case ( v i n y l a c e t a t e ) .
The d u m p i n g m a r g i n was           t h e r e f o r e d e t e r m i n e d by i n c l u d i n g i n t h e b a s i s o f
c a l c u l a t i o n a l l a c r y l o n i t r i l e e x p o r t s t o the Community, i r r e s p e c t i v e o f
w h e t h e r t h e y w e r e i n t e n d e d f o r home u s e o r e f f e c t e d u n d e r t h e                inward
processing               arrangements.
3.       The i n v e s t i g a t i o n r e v e a l e d d u m p i n g m a r g i n s v a r y i n g f r o m 11.5% t o 1 6 . 4 1 % ,
depending             on t h e e x p o r t e r .
4.        With r e g a r d to the i n j u r y caused, the t o t a l volume of a c r y l o n i t r i l e
 i m p o r t s o r i g i n a t i n g i n t h e U n i t e d S t a t e s - i n c l u d i n g T1 i m p o r t s - a f t e r
 h a v i n g r e a c h e d a maximum o f 55 000 t i n 1979,                           has s u b s e q u e n t l y f l u c t u a t e d
 b e t w e e n o n l y 40 000 and 45 000 t , n e v e r e x c e e d i n g 4.9%                         of the t o t a l        market.
 A l t h o u g h t h e c o m p l a i n a n t s ' p r o d u c t i o n d e c r e a s e d by 5.7% b e t w e e n 1979              and
 1 9 8 1 , and t h e i r t o t a l s a l e s on t h e Community m a r k e t                        went down by 25.8%              -
 f r o m 659 000 t t o 489 000 t - t h i s i s due m a i n l y t o f a c t o r s o t h e r t h a n
 US      imports:
      i ) n o t a b l y the f a c t t h a t , whereas the l e v e l of acry l o n i t r i le                         consumption
            on t h e o p e n Community m a r k e t               f e l l by 12.5% b e t w e e n 1979 and                 1981,
            d u r i n g t h e same p e r i o d Community p r o d u c e r s i n c r e a s e d t h e i r p r o d u c t i o n
            c a p a c i t y by 60 000 t , r e s u l t i n g i n a d r o p i n t h e a v e r a g e                 r a t e of use
            of t h i s c a p a c i t y and i n e v i t a b l e p r e s s u r e on             prices;
 ---pagebreak---                                                    - 2     -
    ii)   furthermore,              the volume of              imports        against      w h i c h no    allegation         of
          d u m p i n g was       made - t h e r e f o r e o r i g i n a t i n g         in countries other              than    USA    -
          rose       f r o m 60 000        t i n 1978         t o 104       000   t i n 1981,          i.e. a      considerable
          increase which aggravated                         the     imbalance         on   the     Community        market.
 In the        l i g h t of the       f o r e g o i n g , the       Commission reached                 the  conclusion         that
 the    i n j u r y c a u s e d by       imports        of a e r y l o n i t r i le o r i g i n a t i n g   i n the      United
 States       c o u l d not       be  regarded          as m a t e r i a l , s i n c e t h e       real causes         underlying
 the d i f f i c u l t i e s      affecting         the     Community i n d u s t r y were               largely     the     following:
     i) a sharp           d r o p i n demand on             the open          market;
   ii)   the      simultaneous            increase          in production             capacity;
 iii)    the      sharp       increase        i n imports           from other          countries.
5.      In these          circumstances            and     given the very               keen c o m p e t i t i o n  on    the    world
market       i n a c r y l i c f i b r e s , of which acry l o n i t r i l e represents                        40%    of    the
production            c o s t s , the     Commission considers                   t h a t no     measures are          called      for
at present            to protect the             Community's              interests.
6.     The     Member S t a t e s were i n f o r m e d               of t h i s proposal            f o r the    termination         of
the proceeding               w h e n t h e A n t i - D u m p i n g C o m m i t t e e was        consulted.          France       and
the United           Kingdom expressed                 r e s e r v a t i o n s on    behalf       of    their      producers.
 ---pagebreak---                                            P r o p o s a l for        a
                                         COUNCIL DECISION
   terminating the anti-dumping                           proceeding           i n respect of imports                of a c r y l o -
  nitrile       originating              i n the United States of                     America
                                         (83/            /EEC)
  THE   C O U N C I L OF       THE     EUROPEAN          COMMUNITIES,
  Having       regard        to the Treaty              e s t a b l i s h i n g the European Economic                    Community,
  Having       regard        to Council Regulation                     (EEC)      No  3 0 1 7 / 7 9 o f 20 D e c e m b e r     1979
  on p r o t e c t i o n a g a i n s t dumped o r s u b s i d i z e d                imports from c o u n t r i e s not
                                                                                  1 , as amended by R e g u l a t i o n             (EEC)
  members o f t h e E u r o p e a n Economic                       Community
  No 1 5 8 0 / 8 2,2", a n d i n p a r t i c u l a r A r t i c l e 9             thereof,
  Having      regard to the proposal                        from     the Commission,               submitted       following
  consultation              w i t h i n the       C o m m i t t e e s e t up      lender t h e a b o v e - m e n t i o n e d   Regulation,
  Whereas:
  A.    Procedure
  In A p r i l    1982      the     Commission received a complaint                             from     the European         Council
 of Chemical            Manufacturers'                Federations           (CEFIC),        lodged       on b e h a l f o f   the
 great     m a j o r i t y of Community producers                         of a c r y l o n i t r i l e , which      account      for
  some 9 0 %     of p r o d u c t i o n       i n the       Community;
 The   complaint            contained           evidence          of t h e e x i s t e n c e o f dumping and              resultant
 material        injury.            T h i s was       considered          sufficient          to j u s t i f y  the       initiation
 of a proceeding.                   The     Commission t h e r e f o r e announced, i n a n o t i c e                       published
  in the O f f i c i a l        J o u r n a l of the European Communities^, the                               initiation        of
                                                                                                                       f
 an a n t i - d u m p i n g     proceeding            concerning           imports     of a e r y l o n i t r i le       alling     within
  Common C u s t o m s T a r i f f           heading        ex     29.27, corresponding                 t o NiintXE code         29.27-10,
  originating           i n the United              States of America,                and     o p e n e d an    investigation.
   OJ  No    L 339,         31 . 1 2 . 1 9 7 9 , p .      1.
2
   0J  No    L 178,         2 2 . 0 6 . 1 9 8 2 , p.       9.
3
   0J  No    C     84,      0 3 . 0 4 . 1 9 8 2 , p.      2.
 ---pagebreak---                                                    - 2 -
  The      Commission o f f i c i a l l y      informed        the exporters          and importers       known t o
  be     concerned,       a n d t h e US G o v e r n m e n t .
  The      Commission gave a l l i n t e r e s t e d p a r t i e s t h e o p p o r t u n i t y      t o make   their
  v i e w s known i n w r i t i n g a n d r e q u e s t        a   hearing.
  M o s t o f t h e US e x p o r t e r s    and a number o f i m p o r t e r s           known t o be      concerned
 took       the opportunity            t o make t h e i r v i e w s known i n w r i t i n g ; o n e o f t h e
 exporters, Vistron Corporation,                        Cleveland,         Ohio, requested         and obtained      a
 heari ng.
 A major Community end user                     of acrylonitrile,             Courtaulds        Ltd,    Coventry,
 United         Kingdom, took          the opportunity            t o make i t s v i e w s known i n w r i t i n g a n d
 at a h e a r i n g ; t h e I n t e r n a t i o n a l Rayon and S y n t h e t i c           Fibres Committee     also
 made i t s o p i n i o n known i n w r i t i n g .
 For t h e p u r p o s e s o f a r r i v i n g     a t a p r e l i m i n a r y f i n d i n g as t o whether    dumping
 and      i n j u r y had o c c u r r e d , t h e Commission endeavoured t o gather                     and check
 all     the information             i t considered         necessary,        and c a r r i e d out     on-the-spot
 checks at the f o l l o w i n g companies:
- Community             producers:
                         - CdF C h i m i e - N o r s o l o r , P a r i s l a D e f e n s e ,
                         - Erdblchemie          GmbH, K o l n ,
                         - ANIC,         Milano,
                        - Montedipe,           Milano,
                         - Border        Chemicals,        London,
                        - Monsanto Europe SA, B r u x e l l e s ,
                        - DMS M a r k e t i n g     Centre       Chemicals     and Polymers,         n v , Urmond
-     Exporters:
                         - Dupont de Nemours, W i l m i n g t o n ,              Delaware,
                        - Vistron Corporation,                   Cleveland,       Ohio,
                        - Monsanto, S a i n t - L o u i s , Missouri
                        - I C C I n d u s t r i e s , I n c . , New     York
                        - F a l l e k Chemicals         C o r p . , New     York
 ---pagebreak---                                                         - 3      -
 The     Commission requested                    and     o b t a i n e d d e t a i l e d w r i t t e n comments on                the
 a l l e g e d d u m p i n g , i n j u r y and         i t s causes          from       complainant           producers         in   the
 Community and                a l s o from     m o s t US      e x p o r t e r s and        certain importers;                the
 information obtained                    was     checked         by t h e C o m m i s s i o n i n s o f a r as             necessary.
 The     i n v e s t i g a t i o n p e r i o d adopted           by    the Commission to determine                           whether
d u m p i n g had        occurred        was     the twelve            m o n t h s t o 31        March        1982.
B.       Normal         value
 In order          to determine            whether the             imports         o r i g i n a t i n g i n the United             States
of America             had      been dumped, the               Commission requested                      exporters to           provide
 it with details                  of t h e i r   sales during the                   i n v e s t i g a t i o n p e r i o d on    the     US
domestic           market to non-associated                        customers,            or d e t a i l s of t h e i r        production
costs.
In o r d e r       t o e s t a b l i s h w h e t h e r e x p o r t e r s had           engaged i n dumping the                   Commission
determined             t h e n o r m a l v a l u e on t h e b a s i s o f t h e w e i g h t e d                  average
quarterly            s e l l i n g p r i c e at the          FOB     - place of p r o d u c t i o n            stage       of a c r y l o -
nitrile          s o l d on      t h e US    domestic         market to non-associated                         customers.            In
the      case      o f D u p o n t de N e m o u r s , w h i c h          refused to d i v u l g e the p r i c e s at                   which
i t e f f e c t e d s a l e s on         the domestic              market or d e t a i l s of               i t s production          costs,
the      Commission considered                    t h a t , i n order not t o encourage                            a r e f u s a l to
co-operate,              the normal value               s h o u l d be e s t a b l i s h e d e v e r y         q u a r t e r on    the
basis of the highest normal value determined                                             f o r the other             producers
e x p o r t i n g to the Community.                     For e x p o r t e r s not            selling        on t h e       domestic
m a r k e t , t h e n o r m a l v a l u e was           e s t a b l i s h e d on       the b a s i s of the q u a r t e r l y
average         of the other exporters' s e l l i n g                          p r i c e s on     t h e US      market.
 ---pagebreak---                                                  - 4 -
C.       Export         prices
As     regards         export      p r i c e s , t h e Commission adopted t h e p r i c e s a c t u a l l y paid
or payable f o r exports                     t o t h e Community, as a s c e r t a i n e d             from t h e exporters'
documents.               A number o f s t a n d a r d         a d j u s t m e n t s w e r e m a d e t o e n a b l e a FOB
export         p r i c e t o be c a l c u l a t e d .       The Commission a c c o r d i n g l y             took   into   account,
on     the basis of the checked                      information,             t h e terms of payment,              transport
c o s t s t o t h e Community f r o n t i e r and a l l i e d                     costs    such as ^'nsurance
premiums and any warehousing                           costs.
The      Commission included                   i n i t s c a l c u l a t i o n of the export             prices a l l
consignments of a c r y l o n i t r i l e               t o t h e Community which formed t h e s u b j e c t o f
transactions during                    the investigation period.
In t h i s connection,                 Vistron Corporation                  asserted       t h a t , under t h e terms o f
Council          Regulation          ( E E C ) No 3 0 1 7 / 7 9 , t r a n s a c t i o n s    carried out f o r the
purposes of inward                   processing         under cover             o f customs document T1 should not
be     taken       into account            f o r c a l c u l a t i n g export        prices.        Furthermore,         according
to that          f i r m , t a k i n g such t r a n s a c t i o n s        into consideration               i nthe
c a l c u l a t i o n o f dumping margins would run counter                                t o A r t i c l e V I o f t h e GATT
and      Article         2 o f t h e A n t i - D u m p i n g Code .
The      Commission considers                   that     i t w o u l d be e n t i r e l y o u t o f t h e q u e s t i o n   to
exclude          from t h e b a s i s o f c a l c u l a t i o n t r a n s a c t i o n s e f f e c t e d under          cover
of     c u s t o m s d o c u m e n t T1 w i t h      customs d u t i e s           temporarily       suspended, f o r the
following             reasons of p r i n c i p l e :
   Agreementof 1979 on implementation                                of Article          VI of t h e General         Agreement on
   T a r i f f s and Trade.
 ---pagebreak---                                                           - 5 -
 - firstly,            there       is a possibility                 t h a t Community producers                  may      suffer
injury         as a r e s u l t of these                 imports        i n respect       of/cus£oms d u t i e s a r e
     temporarily             s u s p e n d e d , o w i n g e i t h e r t o t h e i n d i r e c t e f f e c t on             Community
     market p r i c e s or a reduction                        i n the outlets offered to                       producers;
 - furthermore,                excluding           T1 i m p o r t s      from the basis of c a l c u l a t i o n of the
     export        p r i c e s would o f f e r considerable                     scope f o r abuse i n anti-dumping
     proceedings             since subsequent release                        f o r home u s e ( o r r e - e x p o r t )         would
     be d i f f i c u l t      f o r e i t h e r t h e C o m m i s s i o n o r t h e Member S t a t e s                  themselves
     to     substantiate.
 The A n t i - D u m p i n g Code and Community                          legislation        confine         the c o l l e c t i o n of
 anti-dumping d u t i e s t o goods imported                                and consumed i n t h e i m p o r t i n g              country.
  As f o r t h e d e t e r m i n a t i o n         o f d u m p i n g , t h e A n t i - D u m p i n g Code and               Regulation
  (EEC)     No     3017/79 s p e c i f y that the c a l c u l a t i o n should                        be b a s e d n o t on
  import       p r i c e s b u t on e x p o r t          p r i c e s , which       implies that           a l l export         transactions
  should       be t a k e n       into      consideration.
  D.       Comparison
  Accordingly,              i n order         t o d e t e r m i n e whether t h e goods were being                          dumped/the
  normal values               as d e f i n e d     above were compared t r a n s a c t i o n by t r a n s a c t i o n a t
  the     FOB s t a g e       with      the export           p r i c e s t o t h e C o m m u n i t y a t t h e same            stage,
  over      t h e p e r i o d o f t h e i n v e s t i g a t i o n ; a q u a r t e r l y c o m p a r i s o n was              effected,
  using       weighted averages                    where        appropriate.
  Although          Vistron Corporation                    d i s c l o s e d d e t a i l s o f i t s s a l e s on t h e d o m e s t i c
  market and i t s p r o d u c t i o n                costs, i t claimed               that the p r i c e s charged               on
  s a l e s o n t h e US d o m e s t i c m a r k e t w e r e n o t c o m p a r a b l e w i t h                 the prices         charged
  on     i t sexports           t o the Community.                    According        t o V i s t r o n , t h e US m a r k e t i s
  made up o f t r a n s a c t i o n s             c a r r i e d out under           long-term        o r medium-term             contracts
  while       export        markets, i n c l u d i n g the Community, a r e spot                             m a r k e t s , and    normal
  value       ought t h e r e f o r e         t o be c a l c u l a t e d e i t h e r on t h e b a s i s o f t h e               export
  p r i c e o f US a c r y l o n i t r i l e t o t h i r d               countries,
  o r by u s i n g        a constructed               value,        o r by c o r r e c t i n g s e l l i n g     prices        recorded
  on    t h e d o m e s t i c m a r k e t by t h e amounts n e c e s s a r y                  to establish              comparability.
 ---pagebreak---                                                           - 6    -
After giving f u l L c o n s i d e r a t i o n to Vistron's                             arguments, the             Commission          has
concluded that                 the     prices ascertained                  by    i t , w h e t h e r on     the    US   acrylonitri le
m a r k e t o r on         exports         to the         Community, are              intrinsically            comparable,           since
both correspond to normal commercial t r a n s a c t i o n s .                                          In   addition,          the
adjustments to the                     normal value             requested           by    Vistron, to reflect                 the    lower
"infrastructure                  c o s t s " which the            corporation             and      i t s US   customers          would
enjoy        i f the       domestic market were a l s o a spot                              market, are          unacceptable           as
they       do     not    correspond to differences                          in conditons               of  sale     directly
 relevant          to the        sales        here        considered.
 On    the     basis of          the      information           a v a i l a b l e to i t , therefore,                 the     Commission
 failed         t o f i n d any         d i f f e r e n c e s which could              significantly            affect        price
 comparability                i n terms of e i t h e r p h y s i c a l               characteristics, quantity,
 conditionsor               manner of           sale         or stage of t r a n s a c t i o n , between s a l e s                  of
 a c r y l o n i t r i l e on       the     US    m a r k e t and      exports         to the        Community.           The     only
 a d j u s t m e n t s made w e r e t h e              normal ones            f o r terms of payment,                   transport
 and      related costs, designed to permit                                  comparison at the                 FOB    - place       of
 production              stage.
  E.       Margins
  It emerged from the                      above f a c t s that            imports          of the        product      in     question
  originating              i n the       United        States      were being             dumped.
  The      extent       of dumping v a r i e d from exporter                            to exporter.             In each         case,
  the      dumping m a r g i n has                been t a k e n as        the      d i f f e r e n c e between the            normal
  values,          as d e f i n e d      a b o v e , and       the    prices        charged for exports                 of a e r y l o n i t r i l e
   to the         Community.              The     dumping margins a r r i v e d at f o r the                       various         exporters
   e x p r e s s e d as      a p e r c e n t a g e of the           f r e e at      Community f r o n t i e r p r i c e ,           not
   cleared         t h r o u g h c u s t o m s , w e r e as          follows:
 ---pagebreak---                                                 - 7 -
- Fallek        C h e m i c a l C o r p o r a t i o n : n o e x p o r t s o f US a e r y l o n i t r i l e d u r i n g t h e
                                                          p e r i o d c o v e r e d by t h e i n v e s t i g a t i o n
- ICC I n d u s t r i e s :                               dumping        margins v a r y i n g from 10.70%             to
                                                          15.00%,       with a weighted average of                     12.76%
- Dupont de Nemours:                                       dumping       margins v a r y i n g from 10.68%              to   16.51%,
                                                           with a weighted average of                        13.67%
 - Monsanto          Company:                              dumping       margins v a r y i n g from 1.00% t o               22.80%,
                                                           the     weighted average being                     11.50%
 - Vistron Corporation:                                    dumping        margins v a r y i n g from 11.52%             to   20.07%,
                                                           with a weighted average of                         16.41%
 F.      Injury
 A s r e g a r d s i n j u r y t o t h e C o m m u n i t y i n d u s t r y f r o m i m p o r t s o f d u m p e d US          acrylo-
 nitrile,        t h e i n f o r m a t i o n a v a i l a b l e t o t h e Commission                 shows t h a t    total
  imports      i n t o t h e Community, i n c l u d i n g both goods                        r e l e a s e d f o r home u s e a n d
  imports under             t e m p o r a r y a d m i s s i o n a r r a n g e m e n t s , r o s e from 28 143 t o n n e s i n
  1978    t o 54 251 t o n n e s i n 1 9 7 9 , f a l l i n g              b a c k t o ...*        t o n n e s i n 1981 a n d
  rising     a g a i n t o ...            tonnes i n the f i r s t            q u a r t e r of 1982.           This corresponded
  to   an i n c r e a s e     i n t h e market          s h a r e t a k e n by t h e s e i m p o r t s from 3.3% i n
  1978    t o 4.9% i n 1 9 8 1 ; f o r t h e open market                         o n l y , t h e f i g u r e s a r e 5.8% and
  9.5%     respectively.
   Depending        on t h e y e a r , between               9 0 % a n d 9 7 % o f t h e s e i m p o r t s come i n u n d e r t h e
   inward p r o c e s s i n g arrangements                    (T1    imports).
     The   figures are confidential.
 ---pagebreak---                                                       - 8      -
According to the evidence                        a v a i l a b l e to the Commission,                      the s e l l i n g p r i c e s
o f t h e dumped i m p o r t s           i n t h e C o m m u n i t y w e r e o n l y 3%              lower than the p r i c e s
charged         by    Community p r o d u c e r s , but were n e v e r t h e l e s s below                           the    minimum
l e v e l which        would    enable those producers                          to cover t h e i r costs.
As    regards the impact                o f t h e i m p o r t s on t h e C o m m u n i t y i n d u s t r y , t h e                evidence
a v a i l a b l e t o the C o m m i s s i o n shows t h a t :
- i m p o r t s o f US      a c r y l o n i t r i l e on w h i c h          customs d u t i e s were t e m p o r a r i l y
    suspended          under    the inward processing arrangements,                                      which       accounted      for
    97% of i m p o r t s from            t h e USA       during the period covered                           by t h e      investigation,
    e x e r c i s e d a downward p r e s s u r e on p r i c e s on t h e o p e n                          Community          market
    i n t h a t d u r i n g the q u a r t e r l y p r i c e n e g o t i a t i o n s the main Community                             end
    u s e r s aim not t o buy              Community a c r y l o n i t r i l e at a h i g h e r p r i c e than                      they
    would       have t o pay        f o r US       acrylonitrile                r e l e a s e d f o r home u s e          (T2 i m p o r t s ) ,
    viz.      the p r i c e of       ( d u m p e d ) T1      imports p l u s customs d u t i e s , which                        is   below
    the break-even             level       f o r almost          a l l producers;
- the volume of imports from                           the United               S t a t e s , whether          under      the    temporary
    admission arrangements                     o r f o r home u s e ,             reduces       demand f o r Community
    p r o d u c t s where, as          in this         c a s e , t h e y come i n a t              low p r i c e s o v e r a       long
    enough p e r i o d ;
- c o n s e q u e n t l y , i m p o r t s o f US         a e r y l o n i t r i l e , most of which                  come     in   under
    temporary           admission arrangements,                        do c a u s e       some i n j u r y t o          Community
    producers;
- h o w e v e r , t h e C o m m i s s i o n i s f i r m l y o f t h e o p i n i o n t h a t t h e 5.7%                       drop   in
    the complainants'               p r o d u c t i o n b e t w e e n 1979            and     1981     ( f r o m 703      276   tonnes
    t o 662       906   tonnes)       and      the 25.8%           decline in their                  total       s a l e s on   the
      Community m a r k e t ( f r o m         658     953      tonnes        t o 488       806    tonnes        over the       same
    p e r i o d ) a r e due   mainly to factors other than                                imports from             the United       States
    which       are a f f e c t i n g    Community p r o d u c t i o n e i t h e r               i n d i v i d u a l l y or i n
    combination;
 ---pagebreak---                                                          - 9      -
- i n p a r t i c u l a r , c o n s u m p t i o n o f a c r y l o n i t r i l e on              the open Community                    market
    fell      from approximately                    511     250     t o n n e s i n 1979          t o an       estimated          447     400
    tonnes i n 1981,                 a d e c l i n e of 12.5%, while                    over      the      same p e r i o d        total
    Community p r o d u c t i o n              capacity         increased           by    60    000      tonnes          ( 5 % ) , which
    is            f a r i n excess of the                   small       increase          (16 000          tonnes) in             captive
    use     by    i n d u s t r y ; as a r e s u l t , t h e            average capacity u t i l i z a t i o n                     rate    in
    the     Community i n d u s t r y f e l l               from 67%          to      59%;
- i n a d d i t i o n , the            volume of          imports         against         w h i c h no       dumping i s a l l e g e d
    increased           f r o m 60       322    t o n n e s i n 1978          t o 103       665     tonnes i n 1981,                 an
    increase          of 71.8%           which f u r t h e r unbalanced the                       Community             market.
This      indicates that                 the    s l u m p i n demand on                the    open market coupled                     with    a
simultaneous               increase          in production              capacity            and      the     steep       rise      in    imports
against         w h i c h no       dumping i s a l l e g e d              are      the    main causes of the                      difficulties
experienced             by     the     Community i n d u s t r y and                 i n p a r t i c u l a r the          disastrous
financial           r e s u l t s ; most p r o d u c e r s          h a v e made huge l o s s e s on                   acrylonitri le.
Accordingly,               while       i t accepts          t h a t dumped i m p o r t s             h a v e c a u s e d some i n j u r y
t o Community p r o d u c e r s ,               the     Commission cannot conclude                             from the            evidence
available to i t that                      such     i n j u r y taken          in isolation              can     be    regarded         as
material.
The     Commission f i n d s confirmation                           f o r t h i s view i n the                 fact that            the
authorities              i n the       Member S t a t e s          responsible            for issuing                processing
                                                                                                                                               1
a u t h o r i z a t i o n s have r e g u l a r l y renewed such a u t h o r i z a t i o n s over                               the     years/
which       i n d i c a t e s on       the b a s i s of A r t i c l e            5 of      Council          D i r e c t i v e L/773/EEC'         that
the     imports         do     not     conflict          with      the     e s s e n t i a l i n t e r e s t s of         Community
producers.
  0 J No      L 58,        0 8 . 0 3 . 1 9 6 9 , p.       1.
 ---pagebreak---                                                    - 10 -
AcrylonitriLe            i s the feedstock            f o r the acrylic       fibre       industry,         accounting
for 40% of i t sproduction                      costs.     Given the harsh          c o m p e t i t i o n on t h e
Community and w o r l d a c r y l i c             fibre   markets, p r o t e c t i v e measures would not
be i n t h e Community's i n t e r e s t s a t p r e s e n t .            Accordingly, the investigation
may b e c l o s e d a n d t h e p r o c e e d i n g      i n respect of imports               of     aerylonitrile
from the United States                    terminated.
Two o f t h e M e m b e r S t a t e s c o n s u l t e d r a i s e d o b j e c t i o n s .
HAS D E C I D E D AS       FOLLOWS:
                                                Sole   Article
The a n t i - d u m p i n g p r o c e e d i n g   i n respect of imports           of acrylonitri le
originating         i n the United             States    i s hereby    terminated.
Done a t B r u s s e l s ,                                            For t h e C o u n c i l