CELEX: 51981PC0505
Language: en
Date: 1981-08-27
Title: Proposal for a COUNCIL REGULATION (EEC) imposing a definitive anti-dumping duty on o-xylene (orthoxylene) originating in Puerto Rico and the United States of America (submitted to the Council by the Commission)

ARCHIVES HISTORIQUES
DE LA COMMISSION
COLLECTION RELIEE DES
DOCUMENTS "COM"
COM (81) 505
Vol. 1981/0151
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 ---pagebreak--- COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
                                      COM(81)505 final
                                      Brussels . 27 August 1981
                       Proposal for a
                  COUNCIL REGULATION ( EEC )
  imposing a definitive anti-dumping duty on o-xylene
  ( orthoxylene ) originating in Puerto Rico and the
                 United States of America
        ( submitted to the Council by the Commission )
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  C0M(81 ) 505 final
 ---pagebreak---                          EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM
In May 1981 the Commission imposed a provisional anti-dumping duty of
14.47% on imports of -o-xylene ( orthoxylene ) originating in Puerto Rico
and the United States of America .                        .    "
The facts as finally established show that the Shell Chemical Company
had a weighted average dumping margin of 14.47% in the last three quarters
of 1980 . Sun Petroleum had a dumping margin of 10.73% , Arco 4.96% and
Corco 4.43% . Phillips Petroleum was found not to be dumping . None of
these companies disputed the Commission 's findings . Since the imposition
Of the provisional duty , the Tenneco Oil Company , Exxon Chemicals   International
Supply SA , Sun International Inc . and Sunoco ,Overseas Inc offered to co-operate ,
in an 'invest igation of their exports
to the Community and subsequently offered undertakings to the Commission
which eliminated the - dumping found . ^ For those exporters and dealers
                                                 • %                                 . *• •
who did not co-operate withthe Commission , it was assumed that their           •
 dumping margins would not be lower than the highest margin found for .
those exporters who did co-operate i.e. 14.47% for Shell Chemical Company ,
and that this margin should therefore be used for the non- co-operating           v ' '
exporters .
With regard to injury caused to the Community industry it was shown
                      «                    •          '                                     • -
that total imports of o-xylene increased from 55 000 tonnes in 1978 to
102 000 tonnes in 1980 and that approximately 80% of the " imports in the                   *
investigation , period were dumped . The market share of these imports
 rose from 9 7. in 1977 to 17% in 1980 . ' The EEC industry 's resale prices
had fallen irv 1980 leading to' heavy losses by all the producers concerned .
 Production had decreased from 560 000 tonnes in 1 978 to 291.000 tonnes
in 1981 .
It is therefore proposed to impose a definitive anti-dumping duty of 14.47%
on o-xylene originating in Puerto Rico and the United States of America . It
is , however , proposed to exclude from the application 6f this duty the
exports of the one firm found not to be dumping and of the          firms who- offered
undertakings to the Commission .
               J
It is further proposed that the amounts secured by way of provisional duty
should be definitively collected ..
 ---pagebreak---                              COUNCIL REGULATION     ( EEC )
          imposing a definitive anti-dumping duty on o-xylene ( orthoxylene )
          originating in Puerto Rico and the United States of America
  THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES ,
  Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community ,
  Having regard to Council Regulation ( EEC ) No 3017 / 79 of 20 December 1979 on
  protection against dumped or subsidized imports from countries not members
  of the European Economic Comrnunityd ) , and in particular Article 12 thereof ,
  Having regard to the proposal submitted by the Commission after consultation
within the Advisory Committee set up under                         Regulat ion ( EEC ) No 3017 / 79 ,
  Whereas the Commission , by Regulation ( EEC ) No 1411 / 81(2 ), imposed a provisional
  anti-dumping duty of 14.47% on imports'of o-xylene originating in Puerto Rico
  and the United States of America , with the exception of o-xylene exported by :
  -     Phillips Paraxylene Inc . and International Petroleum Sales Inc ., Panama ,
        members of the Phillips Petroleum Group , who were found not to be dumping ;
  -     Arco Chemical Company, which voluntarily gave an undertaking to increase its
        prices to levels which eliminated the dumping margins found ;
  -     Commonwealth Oil Refinery Company Inc ., for which the rate of duty was 4.43% ;
  -     sun Petroleum Products         Company, for which the rate of duty was 10.73% ;
  Whereas , in the course of the subsequent examination of the matter , completed
  after the imposition of this provisional duty , the interested parties had
  the opportunity to make known their views in writing and to be heard by the
   Commission , to inspect non-confidential information relevant to the defence
   of their interests and to be informed of the essential facts and considerat ipns
  on the basis of which it was intended to make a final determination ; whereas
   some of the exporters and importers concerned availed themselves of these
   possibilities by making known their views in writing and orally ; whereas
   ( 1 ) 0J No L 339 , • 31 . 12 . 1979 , p. 1
   ( 2 ) 0J No L 141 , 27.5.1981 , p. 29
 ---pagebreak---                                   - 2 -
                                              Shell Chemical Company ,
the Phillips Petroleum Group , Arco Chemical Company , /Commonwealth Oil Refinery Company
and Sun Petroleum Products     Company did not dispute the findings, of the Commission ;
Whereas                   the Tenneco Oil Company , Houston , Texas , contacted
the Commission to say that they had written in February 1981 in response to the
not i ce" announcing the opening of. the anti-dumping, proceeding on " o-xylene ahd
had offered full co-operation in the subsequent investigation ; whereas this
 *                                   '
letter failed to reach the responsible Commission services ; whereas an on-
spot investigation then took place at Tenneco 's premises in Houston and
a comparison at the FOB level of their export prices to the Community with
their U.£ . domestic prices showed that there . had been a weighted average
                  \    •
dumping margin in the last three quarters of 1980 of 5.15 % ;          whereas
Exxon Chemical International Supply SA             having provided some information
during the preliminary investigation now came forward with supplementary              -
evidence which showed that'     there had been a dumping margin of approximately      •
        •                                / thi.rd        •
  3% on their exports in the second and     quarters bf 1980 ;  whereas Sunoco Overseas
  i nc > and Sun International Inc . also wrote to the Commission offering to 1
   co-operate in an examination of the facts concerning their exports and - an on-spot
   investigation at their premises showed that , in fact , there had been no direct
  exports of o-xylene by these companies in 1980 and that , consequently , it was
  not possible to determine on . the basis of past experience .      that they would
    not dump    if they began exporting ; whereas in these circumstances Sunoco
  Overseas and Sun International offered price undertakings which reflected ,
  the normal values established during the investigation period to allow them
  to be excluded from the duty ;            "   v
Whereas the Commission . has otherwise received no additional information
              ,         *              s                                   •
in respect of dumping such as to lead it to revise the weighted average
dumping margins it had provisionally established ; whereas these margins have therefore;
been considered as definitively established ;
Whereas , with regard to the injury caused by the dumped imports to the
Community industry , the evidence available to the Commission showed that
total imports of o-xylene from the sources concerned into the Community
 ---pagebreak---                                    - 3 -
 increased from approximately 55 000 tonnes in 1978 to approximately 102 000
tonnes in_1980 ; whereas it was shown that approximately 80% of these imports
were made at dumped prices ;
Whereas the market share of these dumped imports in the Community was approximately
14% in 1980 ;
Whereas , since most of the importers concerned were not willing to provide
information to the Commission , the Commission was unable to verify the resale
prices of      o-xylene imported at dumped prices ;
Whereas , however , the resale prices of the EEC industry had steadily fallen
in 1980 and there was evidence that customers had cancelled their contracts
with the Community industry to buy dumped material from the areas concerned ,
thus further depressing the EEC producers' prices ; whereas all the Community
industry has suffered heavy losses in 1980 ;
Whereas production of o-xylene in the Community fell from 560 000 tonnes in
1978 to 291 000 tonnes in 1980 and capacity utilization fell from 70.7% in
1978 to 58.8% in 1980 ; .
Whereas the Commission has considered the injury caused by other factors which ,
individually or in combination , may also be affecting the Community industry ;
whereas it was determined that the level of demand and consumption in the
Community remained relatively stable ; whereas imports from countries other
 lodged by the European Council of Chemical Manufacturers' Federations ( CEFIC )
than those named in the complaint have been fairly constant at considerably
lower volumes than those from Puerto Rico and the United States of America ;
whereas the Commission has received no information since the adoption of
Regulation ( EEC ) No 1411 / 81 which might lead it to revise the conclusions
reached in the said Regulation in this respect ; whereas the Commission has
therefore definitively concluded that the dumped imports have caused material
injury to the Community industry concerned ;
 ---pagebreak---                                   - 4 -
 Whereas , in these ci rcumstances , protection of the Community 's interests
 calls for the imposition of a definitive anti-dumping duty on o-xylene
 originating in the United States of America and Puerto Rico which , having
 regard to the extent of_the injury caused , should be equal to the weighted
 average dumping margin established for the last three quarters of 1980 , and
 for the definitive collection         in their entirety of the amounts secured by
 way of provisional anti-dumping duty ;
 Whereas the Tenneco Oil Company /-         Exxon Chemical International Supply SA and
 the Commonwealth Oil Refinery Company have meanwhi le voluntarily undertaken to
 increase their prices to levels which eliminate the dumping margins found ; whereas
 Sunoco Overseas Inc . and Sun International Inc . have voluntarily undertaken to
 respect the normal values established during the investigation ; whereas the
 Commission considers these undertakings to be acceptable ; whereas it is
 consequently at)propH ate to exclude the imports of the products
 exported by. these companies from the application of the duty ;
                                                     %
 Whereas , for the reasons indicated above , exports of o-xylene to the Community
 by Phillips Petroleum Group       ,and Arco Chemical Company should also be              ~
 excluded from the application of this definitive anti-dumping duty ;
 HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION :
                                        Article 1
 1.  A definitive anti-dumping duty is hereby imposed on o-xylene ( orthoxylene ) falling
 within Common Customs Tariff subheading ^9.01 D I and corresponding to
 NIMEXE code 29.01-65 originating in Puerto Rico and the United States of
 America .
2.   This duty shall not apply to o-xylene                          exported by :
-   Arco Chemical Company ,
-   Phillips Paraxylene Inc . and International Petroleum Sales Inc ., Panama ,
    members of the Phillips Petroleum Group
                          ï               '              '                            ' -
-   Tenneco 0i l Company ,
-   Exxon Chemical International Supply SA -
~   Sunoco Overseas Inc .   anc' Stiri International Inc .,
 - Commonwealth Oil Refinery Co Inc .
 ---pagebreak---  3.     The rate of the duty shall be 14.47% on the basis of the customs
 value determined in accordance with Council Regulation ( EEC ) No 1224 / 80
 of 28 May 1980 on the valuation of goods for customs purposes (1 ) , except
 for exports made by Sun Petroleum Products Co ., Philadelphia , Pennsylvani
 for which the rate of duty shall be 10.73% .
 4.     The provisions in force concerning customs duties shall apply for
 the application of this duty .
                                    Art i c le 2
 The amounts secured by way of provisional anti-dumping duty pursuant to
                       »
 Regulation ( EEC ) No 1 41 1 / 81 shall be definitively collected .
                                   Article     3
 This Regulation shall enter into force on the day of its publication in
 the Official Journal of the European Communities .
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable
in all Member States .
Done at Brussels ,                                      For the Council
  ( 1 ) 0J No L 134 , 31.5.1980 , p. 1