Source: European Parliament
Before taking action against unfairly traded imports (i.e. dumped of subsidised), the Commission must first establish that these practices are taking place and that they are causing harm to the EU industry. This requires investigations which are complex and subject to a strict legal framework.
In 2018, as part of the modernisation of the trade defence instruments, the length of anti-dumping investigations was shortened by one month.
Since then, provisional measures are imposed eight, and in some cases seven months after initiation. Also, in October 2024, the Commission decided to register imports in all ongoing new investigations to facilitate the retroactive application of measures, i.e. before the date of provisional measures, if the legal conditions allow[1].
As regards citric acid, there are anti-dumping measures in place on imports of the product from China ranging between 16.3% and 42.7% since 2008.
These measures were most recently extended for a further five years, in April 2021, following an expiry review[2]. These measures reflect the levels of dumping found in the context of an investigation conducted in line with World Trade Organisation and EU legislation.
Measures in place may be reviewed on request by interested parties where there are changed circumstances of a lasting nature. The Commission conducts such reviews where it receives evidence from the European industry that action is warranted and will assist any industry in using the instruments.