European Commission Initiates Re-investigation on Certain Iron and Steel Fastener Imports from China

The European Commission announced in its official journal on Jan. 30th, 2014 that the investigation on the antidumping measure against certain iron and steel fasteners (other than stainless steel) from China, which has continued to levy 22.9-74.1% antidumping duties on Chinese exporting manufacturers since 2009, has been initiated again and will make assessments to see if the imports of certain Chinese iron and steel fasteners continue to cause any material injury to related producers within 28 member countries of the EU as well as discuss the possibility of the 5-year extension of the current antidumping measure. As is known, European Commission received the official application from European Industrial Fasteners Institute on Oct. 1st, 2013, which represents one fourth of the total production of iron and steel fasteners in the EU. The Commission has sent the notice to related sampled Chinese exporting manufacturers, Chinese authorities, and related fastener associations in China. Manufacturers concerned have to submit their data and information to the Commission within 37 days (before March 11, 2014) after the publication of the official journal, in order to facilitate the investigation. Manufacturers not included in the sampling can still participate in the investigation by providing their own data. The period of the investigation is estimated to last for 15 months and the final definite measure is expected to be announced on Jan. 29, 2015.