European Commission Requires EU Member States to Register Aluminium Extrusion Imports From China in Advance of Potential Levy of Heavy Tariffs and Increased Costs for AliDeck Competitors that Rely on Chinese Imports
In a major development in the industry, the European Commission recently required EU member states to begin registering imports of Chinese aluminium extrusions. This move comes against the backdrop of the ongoing EU anti-dumping investigation into the importation of Chinese extrusions to the EU and its effect on European extruders.
The European Union has long sought to protect itself and its economy from under-pricing by rest-of-world companies, levying tariffs where appropriate to prevent cheap imports undermining Europe-based operators. With regards aluminium imports, European extruders lodged complaints with the European Commission that Chinese producers were “dumping” imports into the EU and that trade protection interventions were required to save jobs in the bloc.
Anti-dumping definition from HMRC:
Anti-dumping duty is an import duty charged in addition to normal Customs Duty and is applied in the UK and across the whole EU.
It’s designed to allow the UK and EU to take action against goods that are sold at less than their normal value – that being defined as the price for ‘like goods’ sold in the exporter’s home market.
Launching the anti-dumping investigation in February, the EU requested that member states begin to register imports of Chinese extrusions with effect from August 25th in order to allow tariffs to be applied retroactively to that date if the investigation concludes to levy duties. The potential tariffs are eye-watering, with up to 48% duty being proposed.
The affected products include “bars, rod, profiles (whether or not hollow), tubes, or pipes”, effectively any aluminium extrusion except for those imported in packaged kit form or those that have been attached or welded as parts of subassemblies.
While the UK has left the EU and will be fully separated at the end of the year as the transition period ends, the reasonable expectation must be that any such tariffs will be carried over or implemented by the UK government, at least until a Trade Deal is signed with China to obviate them but that is highly likely to be a significant number of years away.
Annex 1: Summary of the proposed duties for information purposes only
Annex 1: Summary of the proposed duties for information purposes only
| Company | Dumping Margin | Injury Margin | Provisional Tariff |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Guangdong Haomei New Materials Co., Ltd |
30.4% | 30.5% | 30.4% |
|
Guangdong King Metal Light Alloy Technology Co., Ltd |
30.4% | 30.5% | 30.4% |
|
Press Metal International Ltd |
38.2% | 56.4% | 38.2% |
|
Press Metal International Technology Ltd |
38.2% | 56.4% | 38.2% |
|
Other co-operators |
34.9% | 45.5% | 34.9% |
|
All other companies |
48.0% | 65.6% | 48.0% |
Potential tariffs pose major issue for companies that rely on Chinese imports
Clearly, heavy import tariffs such as the above will massively impact on the costs borne by aluminium extrusion importers, costs that will certainly be passed on to customers.
Many of the companies in the UK’s aluminium decking market rely on Chinese imports, with their entire product range manufactured in China and shipped into the UK. Already we have heard reports that some companies have suddenly hiked their prices for aluminium decking, perhaps in anticipation of future tariffs on their imports.
Fortunately, AliDeck only extrude in the UK and all of our products are manufactured, powder-coated, and supplied to our customers from our bases around Britain. Consequently, whatever the outcome of this EU investigation, you can be assured that AliDeck’s prices will remain at the highly competitive level that they are now.
AliDeck invest in Britain with a UK-based supply chain
AliDeck are proud that our products have always been made in the UK and will continue to be. By doing so we not only guarantee our customers a reliable supply chain, quick lead times, and no nasty surprises but we also support and invest in British industry. In these challenging economic times, that support and investment in our home economy is crucial to the well-being of us all and of our society.
To guarantee that you will always receive the absolute best value for your aluminium decking requirement, call the AliDeck team on 01622 235 672 or email info@alideck.co.uk.
