European wine imports face anti-dumping probe
By Ye Zhen |
June 6, 2013, Thursday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
China yesterday launched its own anti-dumping and anti-subsidy investigations of wines imported from Europe, a day after the European Union slapped tariffs on Chinese-made solar panels.
China announced the investigations at the request of the domestic wine manufacturers who claimed that the EU was using unfair trade practices, like dumping and subsidies, to import wines into China that was hurting local business, the Ministry of Commerce said in a statement.
"We have noted the quick growth in the number of wines imported from the EU in recent years and we will conduct stringent investigations in accordance with the law," the ministry said.
The move came quickly after the European Union Trade Commissioner, Karel De Gucht, announced on Tuesday that 27-nation bloc would impose preliminary tariffs of 11.8 percent on the imports of solar panels, cells and wafers from China, starting from today, rising to 47.6 percent on August 6 unless a settlement is reached with China.
In a separate statement released earlier yesterday, the ministry expressed China's "resolute opposition" to the EU move, saying that China has showed enormous sincerity and made great efforts to try to resolve the issue through talks.
"Economic and trade relations are an important foundation of China-EU relationship and China is unwilling to see the trade friction in the solar sector affect the overall China-EU relation," the ministry's spokesman Shen Danyang said in the statement.
The ministry called on the EU to "further show sincerity and flexibility to find a mutually acceptable solution through consultations."
China exported solar panel to the tune of 21 billion euros (US$27 billion) to the EU in 2011, accounting for 70 percent of the total output. The probe into the Chinese solar panel imports is the largest of the 18 ongoing trade disputes initiated by the EU against China.
Most of China's imports of European wine come from France, Spain and Italy, EU statistics show, highlighting that any commercial impact would fall on the countries whose governments supported the anti-dumping tariffs.
"We believe there is not dumping of European wines on the Chinese market," a spokesman for the EU, Roger Waite, told the Associated Press.
Waite declined to say whether EU officials see the wine probe into alleged unfair subsidies and dumping practices as retaliation. But the head of a French wine exporters' group expressed alarm that the industry was caught in the dispute, AP said.
"The use of our sector as leverage in a trade dispute is particularly regrettable," said Louis Fabrice Latour, president of the Federation of Wine and Spirits Exporters of France. "We fervently hope that the European Union and China will be able to defuse these trade tensions by dialogue."
Liu Danyang, vice director with the Bureau of Fair Trade for Imports and Exports under the commerce ministry, insisted yesterday that China's wine investigation was not a retaliation for the solar panel duties.
China imported 290 million liters of wine last year from the EU, accounting for 67.6 percent of its total wine imports, according to the Chinese Customs figures.
Market watchers said the trade probe into European wines will reduce Chinese imports of wines and give a boost to the domestic wineries that are suffering significant drop in market share.
Shares of Chinese wineries soared yesterday with Yantai Changyu Pioneer Wine Co Ltd jumping by the daily limit of 10 percent to 44.44 yuan.
China announced the investigations at the request of the domestic wine manufacturers who claimed that the EU was using unfair trade practices, like dumping and subsidies, to import wines into China that was hurting local business, the Ministry of Commerce said in a statement.
"We have noted the quick growth in the number of wines imported from the EU in recent years and we will conduct stringent investigations in accordance with the law," the ministry said.
The move came quickly after the European Union Trade Commissioner, Karel De Gucht, announced on Tuesday that 27-nation bloc would impose preliminary tariffs of 11.8 percent on the imports of solar panels, cells and wafers from China, starting from today, rising to 47.6 percent on August 6 unless a settlement is reached with China.
In a separate statement released earlier yesterday, the ministry expressed China's "resolute opposition" to the EU move, saying that China has showed enormous sincerity and made great efforts to try to resolve the issue through talks.
"Economic and trade relations are an important foundation of China-EU relationship and China is unwilling to see the trade friction in the solar sector affect the overall China-EU relation," the ministry's spokesman Shen Danyang said in the statement.
The ministry called on the EU to "further show sincerity and flexibility to find a mutually acceptable solution through consultations."
China exported solar panel to the tune of 21 billion euros (US$27 billion) to the EU in 2011, accounting for 70 percent of the total output. The probe into the Chinese solar panel imports is the largest of the 18 ongoing trade disputes initiated by the EU against China.
Most of China's imports of European wine come from France, Spain and Italy, EU statistics show, highlighting that any commercial impact would fall on the countries whose governments supported the anti-dumping tariffs.
"We believe there is not dumping of European wines on the Chinese market," a spokesman for the EU, Roger Waite, told the Associated Press.
Waite declined to say whether EU officials see the wine probe into alleged unfair subsidies and dumping practices as retaliation. But the head of a French wine exporters' group expressed alarm that the industry was caught in the dispute, AP said.
"The use of our sector as leverage in a trade dispute is particularly regrettable," said Louis Fabrice Latour, president of the Federation of Wine and Spirits Exporters of France. "We fervently hope that the European Union and China will be able to defuse these trade tensions by dialogue."
Liu Danyang, vice director with the Bureau of Fair Trade for Imports and Exports under the commerce ministry, insisted yesterday that China's wine investigation was not a retaliation for the solar panel duties.
China imported 290 million liters of wine last year from the EU, accounting for 67.6 percent of its total wine imports, according to the Chinese Customs figures.
Market watchers said the trade probe into European wines will reduce Chinese imports of wines and give a boost to the domestic wineries that are suffering significant drop in market share.
Shares of Chinese wineries soared yesterday with Yantai Changyu Pioneer Wine Co Ltd jumping by the daily limit of 10 percent to 44.44 yuan.
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