The European Commission has found that Chinese extrusions have been sold in the European Union at prices so low, that they can be considered dumping and unfair competition to domestic producers. The investigation – that was launched in February 2020 – will determine whether these aluminium products are being dumped and whether the dumped imports have caused injury to the European industry. Provisional duties have already been in force to aluminium profiles, rods, bars, extruded tubes and pipes since 12 October 2020. The duty rates vary from 30.4% to 48%, on top of the already applicable import tax of 7.5%. We expect the preliminary outcome of the investigation related to flat rolled products by mid-March. The final outcome will be published in April 2021.
As per the European Commission, the Government of China has declared the production of aluminium as a strategic aim for the Chinese economy. As a result, within 15 years China's primary aluminium production increased from 15% to 57% of worldwide production. The Chinese Government also steers and encourages the experts of semi-fabricated products through a sophisticated schedule of tax rebates and other incentives.
Chinese aluminium capacities and output systematically and increasingly exceed domestic demand. While the Chinese Government has acknowledged the problem of the enormous and further growing structural overcapacities, they are not being dealt with adequately. Therefore, an increasing number of producers have - government-incentivised - focused primarily or exclusively on export markets. In other words, Chinese overproduction is being dumped on third country markets, causing globally material injury to domestic aluminium extrusion and flat-rolled industries. Rolled and extruded semi-fabricated aluminium products already carry tariffs in Canada, the US, Vietnam and Australia.
In case your business depends on Chinese aluminium semi fabricated products, let us know. Euralco has a vast international network of technically valid and commercially attractive alternative suppliers to choose from.
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