EU weighs duties on steel tubes

19/11/2008 12:00 - 736 Views

BRUSSELS - The European Union threatened to impose tariffs on steel tubes from Turkey, Ukraine and Belarus to shield EU producers from foreign competition.

The EU began an inquiry into whether Turkish, Ukrainian and Belarusian exporters of welded tubes, pipes and hollow profiles sell them in the 27-nation bloc below cost, a practice known as dumping. The probe excludes tubes, pipes and hollow profiles made of cast iron or stainless steel as well as line pipe and tubing used in the oil and natural-gas industries.

The investigation will determine whether the products are "being dumped and whether this dumping has caused injury," the European Commission said yesterday. The commission has nine months to decide whether to impose provisional anti-dumping duties for half a year and EU governments have 15 months to decide whether to apply "definitive" levies for five years.

Nov 13, 2008

Source: www.hurriyet.com.tr