The WTO Dispute Settlement Mechanism released the panel report on China’s appeal of EU’s anti-dumping measures against the fasteners imported from China (case No. DS397) on August 7, 2015, making the ruling that the EU still violated WTO rules and the Chinese side won. Official from the Department of Treaty and Law of MOFCOM made comments on it. He said the WTO panel report ruled that the EU side has violated WTO rules in some core issues such as domestic industry limits, the calculation of dumping margin and business information disclosure of substitute countries. It means that the EU has violated the WTO rules in many aspects concerning the substituent countries in the investigation of anti-dumping countries against China, and the EU side should make radical changes in this respect. The Chinese side welcomed the ruling.

The official said this case is of great significance to China. In 2009, the EU launched anti-dumping measures against the fasteners imported from China, affecting US$ 900 million of China’s exports to EU, over 200 enterprises and thousands of employees. According to the WTO Dispute Settlement Procedures, the EU side has the right to appeal to the WTO panel on the ruling. The Chinese side thinks that the EU side should cancel the anti-dumping measures as soon as possible. The Chinese side will actively cope with the possible follow-up procedures and hope that the dispute could be well dealt with and make sure China’s fasteners could export to EU in a normal way as soon as possible.