FAIR

F.A.I.R. is pleased with the clear rejection of anti-dumping duties on leather shoes originating in China and Vietnam, by the EU Member States. F.A.I.R. notes that this rejection simply replicates the message Member States already gave to the European Commission at the provisional stage of these proceedings. At that moment (in March 2006) however, the European Commission decided to nevertheless impose anti-dumping duties.

According to F.A.I.R. President Paul Verrips: “Throughout the proceeding, F.A.I.R. has always strongly argued that anti-dumping measures are against the interest of European consumers and footwear companies. We are highly satisfied that the Member States have clearly confirmed this by opposing the proposal of the European Commission”. Moreover, F.A.I.R. also observes that the ultimate outcome of this vote vindicates its conviction that the information upon which this proposal was based was highly unreliable.

With this being the second proposal to be rejected by Member States, Mr. Verrips considers that it will be difficult for the Commission to come with a new proposal. Therefore, F.A.I.R. expects that the rejection of this proposal will be formally confirmed in September.

F.A.I.R. - Footwear Association of Importers and Retail chains:

F.A.I.R. represents the interests of more than 100 EU footwear companies and includes companies such as Colombia (France, USA), Clarks (Great Britain), Deichmann (Germany), Wortmann (Germany), Leder & Schuh (Austria) and Vivarte (France). F.A.I.R. members are established in 14 Member States, have a total turnover of over 17 billion and provide direct employment to approximately 90,000 people. In this anti-dumping case, F.A.I.R. members represent about 50% of the concerned imports and have a market share of 30%.

Filed under: Uncategorized on August 7th, 2006