EC investigates import supplies of valves from Belarus

The European Commission has opened an anti-dumping case against the import of Belarusian steel bars. This is the second case when anti-dumping proceedings are conducted by the Commission on the initiative of Polish manufacturers.

“The procedure is connected with a rapid increase in the import of steel products from Belarus, in particular to Poland, and the initiator was the ferrous metallurgy companies,” said the president of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry Stefan Dzienniak.

The formal initiation of the case took place on March 31 and involves an investigation into the import of products used for concrete reinforcement. The EU steel industry has initiated an anti-dumping case for the second time at the request of the Polish industry, which confirms the unique position of the iron and steel industry in Poland to protect jobs in this sector.

Statistics confirm a sharp increase in the import of Belarusian rebar to the European Union. In 2015, imports to the EU amounted to 477 thousand tons, which is 102 percent more than in the previous year (236 thousand tons) and as much as 221 percent more than in 2011 (149 thousand tons). At the same time, Poland imported 151 thousand tons of these products, which is 210 percent more than 49 thousand tons in 2014, and more than a thousand percent in 2011, when the volume of imports was 13 thousand tons.

The initiation of anti-dumping proceedings against goods from Belarus is to counteract the increase in imports of metal products to the EU from third countries. In parallel with this, the EU is taking actions related to the possible negative consequences of the possible status of China as a country with a market economy, which will have a significant impact not only on trade policy, but also on the entire EU economy.