Developments in Anti-Dumping Practices: Dumping Investigation against Flat Steel Imports from the People's Republic of China

On December 21, 2016, the Ministry of Economy ("Ministry"), by way of publishing the Communiqué on the Prevention of Unfair Competition in Imports (No. 2016/51) ("Communiqué") in the Official Gazette, has announced that it has initiated an investigation into imports of milled, non-rolled flat steel^[1] (thick plaque) from the People's Republic of China ("China").

As per Article 3 of the Communiqué, the investigation covers the period from July 1, 2015, to June 30, 2016.

- Alleged Dumping

Article 6 of the Communiqué stated that, as a result of the comparison between the normal price and unit export price to Turkey, the dumping margin of the thick plaque originating from China was found to be above the ratio for negligible volumes, as stated in Article 28 of the Regulation on the Prevention of Unfair Competition in Imports ("Regulation"), which is akin to and closely modeled after Article 5.8 of the Anti-Dumping Agreement of the World Trade Organization.

- Alleged Damage and Causality

Following the assessment made by the Ministry, it was determined that:

1. Thick plaque imports from China had increased considerably both during the investigation period as well as in the preceding period,
2. Imports from China had not undercut domestic production prices, and
3. Domestic production volume, domestic sales, domestic revenues, as well as sales profits from domestic sales and total profit rates had all decreased during the investigation period.

The Ministry, in light of the foregoing findings, concluded that China's alleged dumping with regard to thick plaque imports to Turkey was threatening Turkey's domestic production.

- Questionnaire and Information Submissions

As per Article 10 of the Communiqué, the Ministry will notify all related local importers and foreign exporters and manufacturers regarding the investigation, providing them with a non-confidential summary of the investigation and a copy of the questionnaire for importers or exporters/manufacturers.

Importers and exporters/manufacturers who have not been notified by the Ministry or who have not been able to obtain the notification for certain reasons, can find a copy of the questionnaire on the Ministry's website.

All submissions to the Ministry should be made in Turkish, as stated in Article 10. This rule holds particular importance for foreign exporters and manufacturers, since information or documents which are not provided in Turkish will not be taken into account by the Ministry during the investigation.

- Deadlines

Importers and exporters/manufacturers that are notified of the investigation have to submit their responses to the questionnaire within thirty seven days (including the mailing period) starting from the date the notification was sent.

For importers and foreign exporters/manufacturers who have not been officially notified by the Ministry, this period of thirty seven days starts following the publication date of the Communiqué (i.e., December 21, 2016).

- Non-Cooperation

The Ministry also notes in Article 12 of the Communiqué that non-cooperation (i.e., failing to submit the answers in due time and required format, or refusing to give access to the relevant information and documents, or hindering the investigation, or providing false or misleading information) will result in the Ministry's decision to finalize the investigation by taking into consideration only the current information at hand (as per Article 26 of the Regulation). The relevant parties are reminded that non-cooperation or partial cooperation may lead to less favorable outcomes for the concerned parties.