EC confirms and increases duties on Chinese HRC

The European Commission has confirmed this week the imposition of definitive duties on HRC imported from China. The duties imposed are slightly higher than the provisional measures announced in October last year.

Concluding the investigation started in February 2016, the EC imposed definitive duties of between 18.1% and 35.9% on Chinese HRC. Material originating from the Hegang group mills is set to be the less-penalised, Kallanish understands.

In its document confirming the duties, the EC noted that volumes of Chinese dumped material in Europe began to decrease after the investigations had started. The January-July average monthly import volume for China was well above 128,000 tonnes/month. The level then decreased to just below 100,000 t/month in the second half of 2016.

As reported, definitive plate import duties for Chinese material were also confirmed at the end of February this year.

The confirmation of definitive import duties for Chinese HRC comes after the EC informed last week that provisional duties on imports of HRC from Russia, Brazil, Iran, Ukraine and Serbia would not be imposed.

In a comment on the announcement sent to Kallanish, Gareth Stace, director of trade organisation UK Steel, said, “This is a welcome decision by the Commission given the continued efforts by China to undermine European steelmakers by dumping cheap steel on to the market. So long as China avoids taking steps to tackle its own issues with overcapacity and, fails to adhere to the principle of free trade which is the lifeblood of the steel sector then such duties are going to be necessary to ensure we don’t pay the price here in the UK and across Europe.”

EC imposes final anti-dumping duty on Chinese HRC

The European Commission has imposed definitive anti-dumping duties on hot-rolled coils of Chinese origin, ranging from 18.1% to 35.9%, the EC said in a report published Thursday.

Jiangsu Shagang Group received a 35.9% duty rate, whereas Bengang Steel Plates is now subject to a 28.1 rate and Hesteel Group 18.1%. All other cooperating companies received a 27.3% rate, and other Chinese companies received 35.9%.

While Chinese imports into the EU showed a decrease last year, the drop was merely resulting from the investigation announcement and import volumes remained at a high level, the EC said.

Chinese imports amounted to 773,275 mt in the period of January-June 2016, lower than the prior six month period July to December 2015 when levels reached 806,914 mt, but still higher year on year. The decrease in volumes in the second half of 2016 was due to the anticipated announcement of preliminary duties in October last year. “The decrease of Chinese import volumes after July 2016 can be explained by the chilling effect of the registration request and the knowledge of intention of the Commission to decide on provisional measures within 8 months of initiation,” the EC said.

The EC further said decreasing Chinese imports were likely to be temporary “and such trend would revert if no measures are imposed.”

The investigation found Chinese import prices increased from July last year, but that this was on the back of rising raw material costs and parallel to import prices from other countries. “Hence, despite the increased in price levels, the enormous price depression remains, which puts the EU industry into an unsustainable position.”

“Eurofer welcomes that this case has come to positive a conclusion, with definitive duties of up to 35.9%, augmented from the 22.6% found at the provisional measures stage,” the European steel producers’ association told S&P Global Plats. The preliminary duty rate was at 13.2% to 22.6%.

The EC is also investigating imports of hot-rolled coils from Brazil, Iran, Russia, Serbia and Ukraine in a separate case.

Laura Varriale, PLATTS

Handel Schweiz – Seminarprogramm April / Mai 2017

Gerne weisen wir Sie auf die nächsten Kurse unseres Seminarprogramms Frühjahr / Sommer 2017 hin. Für alle Kurse sind noch Plätze verfügbar.

Folgende Kurse haben wir für das Frühjahr für Sie organisiert:

• Identifizieren – Interessieren – Initiieren: Messen zur gezielten Akquise nutzen (27.04.2017)
  (Download pdf)
• Wettbewerbsvorteile durch Digitalisierung (04.05.2017)
  (Download pdf)
• Die Schweizer Sozialwerke – Was Sie über die berufliche Altersversorgung als Unternehmer wissen sollten (05.05.2017)
  (Download pdf)

Desweiteren möchten wir Sie auf das Nachfolgeseminar zu unserem Webinar vom 15.03.2017 hinweisen. Am 1. Juni findet eine TQS-Vertriebsschulung für Ihre Vertriebsmitarbeiter in Zürich statt:

• TQS-Vertriebsschulung: So aktivieren Sie versteckte Umsatz- und Gewinnpotenziale im Prozess Anfrage – Angebot – Abschluss!
  (Die Teilnehmerzahl ist auf 15 begrenzt!)

Die Anmeldung zu unseren Seminaren ist unkompliziert über die interaktiven PDF oder auf der Webseite von Handel Schweiz möglich.

Über Ihre rege Teilnahme würden wir uns freuen. Ihr Feedback ist uns ebenfalls willkommen.

Mit freundlichen Grüssen
Andreas Steffes

Handel Schweiz  |  Commerce Suisse  |  Commercio Svizzera  |  Swiss Trade
Güterstrasse 78  |  Postfach 656  |  CH-4010 Basel
Tel. 061 228 90 32  |  Fax 061 228 90 39

www.handel-schweiz.com  |  info@handel-schweiz.com

Revista Infoacero Marzo 2017

Infoacero en su edición del mes de Marzo: INFOACERO

A continuación destacamos algunos de los contenidos de la misma:

• Opinión – D. Fernando Moraga Abaigar – Presidente de la Unión de Almacenistas de Aragón y Soria.

• Evolución del Índice de Precios de Productos Siderúrgicos –  UAHE

• Información Asociativa–Resumen de la Asamblea General de la Unió de Magatzemistes, 23 de Marzo – Gavá (Barcelona)

•  Próximos Eventos: IV Cumple Político Empresarial (PMcM), 20 de Abril y X Congreso de la UAHE, 25-27 de Mayo

CLEPA Aftermarket Conference: Automotive Aftermarket Goes Digital

Driven by connectivity-based services and new players entering the scene, the digital transformation of the automotive aftermarket business is rapidly gaining momentum and scope. These and other trends were highlighted at the 8^th Aftermarket conference on March 29/30, organised by CLEPA, the European Association of automotive suppliers, in Brussels.

“The share of digital products and services in the automotive aftermarket is expected to triple within the next decade, reaching almost 20%”, said Roberto Vavassori, President of CLEPA.

“The use of digital media and connectivity is now entering a new age, accelerating interaction between all market players.” Vavassori referred to the conclusions of a new McKinsey report on disruptive trends and possible scenarios for the further development of the automotive aftermarket. The study was conducted in close collaboration with CLEPA. First insights were presented at the conference and the full study will be available from June 2017.

“The value chain for spare parts and repair services, that used to be separated in an Independent Aftermarket (IAM) and an Original Equipment Sales (OES) channel, will be replaced by new collaboration models among connected market players”, added Sigrid de Vries, Secretary General of CLEPA. The key to this highly competitive and rapidly transforming market segment will be access to repair and maintenance information (RMI) and access to in-vehicle data.

In this respect, CLEPA closely follows the revision of the EU type approval regulation, currently discussed in the European Parliament and the Council of member states. Vehicle equipment information on VIN number basis and access to software and vehicle repair and maintenance information in the form of machine-readable and electronically-processable datasets are seen as important to underpin fair competition.

The CLEPA Aftermarket Conference, for the first time, gave room to small and midsize enterprises (SMEs) and start-ups to present their views and ideas with regard to new business models and data-based services around mobility. Within the ‘digital transformation’ session, CLEPA introduced an outlook on telematics services, a marketplace for data as well for services such as cyber security, intelligent transportation offerings or parking.

All of these services are based on access to in-vehicle data, either created by separate devices installed in the vehicle, or using existing vehicle technology. The Aftermarket Conference participants were given an update on the European Commission’s thinking on this topic by Wolfgang Hoefs who introduced the “Building the European Data Economy” communication published earlier this year.

CLEPA actively supports the creation of a competitive single market for data services. A level playing field will be key to support the development of innovative and competitive services by various providers in the interest of the consumers. At the same time, vehicle integrity and vehicle security and safety must be ensured at all times. CLEPA strongly supports the five guiding principles defined by the European Commission in its cooperative, connected and automated mobility platform (C-ITS).

European automotive suppliers and vehicle manufacturers are currently in a proof-of-concept phase, in order to find a pragmatic, feasible and timely solution for access to in-vehicle data and resources for third parties via neutral as well as OEM-operated back-end servers.

CLEPA is the European Association of Automotive Suppliers. 121 of the world’s most prominent suppliers for car parts, systems and modules and 23 National trade associations and European sector associations are members of CLEPA, representing more than 3 thousand companies, employing more than 5 million people and covering all products and services within the automotive supply chain. Based in Brussels, Belgium, CLEPA is recognised as the natural discussion partner by the European Institutions, United Nations and fellow associations (ACEA, JAMA, MEMA, etc.).

Facts about the European automotive industry

• Some 12 million people are employed in the European automotive industry
• European automotive suppliers directly employ 5 million people
• European automotive suppliers invest €22bn in RDI per year. They are the biggest private investor into research and innovation
• Per year, 18 million vehicles are manufactured in Europe, contributing to the stability and growth of the European economy

For more information, please contact: Amalia Di Stefano, Chief Global Governmental Affairs & Communication Officer (a.distefano@clepa.be).