The 15-member European Union has taken a first step to open up its
markets to imported Chinese television sets after two years of
negotiations stemming from charges of dumping against manufacturers
in China.
A
deal reached on August 29, but never officially announced to the
public, will allow seven of China's largest TV manufacturers to
sell a limited number of sets in the EU without hassles at Customs,
while imposing a minimum price on each TV set to prevent
dumping.
The seven domestic TV producers are Sichuan Changhong Electronic Co
Ltd, TCL Holdings Co, Xiamen Overseas Chinese Electronics Co, Haier
Group Co, Hisense Group Corp, Konka Group Co and Skyworth
Group.
Despite the quota and floor price, the EU will also charge a hefty
44.6 percent tariff on each set to protect European manufacturers
from losing too much market share to their cheaper rivals.
Neither the floor price nor the numbers of sets Chinese
manufacturers are allowed to sell in the EU have been made
public.
Though the deal doesn't reduce the tariff imposed on imports from
China, domestic companies are still hailing it as a victory.
"The breakthrough is that the EU will not interfere with Chinese TV
manufacturers' marketing activities" as long as the made-in-China
TV sets are sold above the floor price, said an official with the
China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Machinery and
Electronics, which was entrusted by the seven companies to
negotiate with the EU.
In
the past, Chinese companies have accused the EU of blocking
imported sets at the boarder.
While the deal isn't expected to aid Chinese manufacturers much in
the short term, "it signals a more standardized EU market which
will phase out trade protectionism," said Liu Haizhong, a spokesman
for Sichuan Changhong Electronics.
Liu says China's entry into the World Trade Organization late last
year played a role in ending the dispute. As a WTO member, China is
expected to open up markets to overseas companies and investors
while other WTO member economies open their markets to Chinese
firms.
The TV spat began in 1988 when the EU's then 12 member began
investigating accusations of dumping against TV manufacturers in
China and South Korea. When none of China's 87 domestic TV makers
responded to the suit, the EU imposed a 15.3 percent anti-dumping
tax on sets imported from China. The tax rose to 25.6 percent in
1995 and 44.6 percent in 1998.
In
1999, Xiamen Overseas Electronics hired a Belgium law firm to prove
they weren't engaged in dumping - the act of selling goods in a
foreign market below production cost.
Six other Chinese TV makers joined the fight in 2000.
Su
Zaiquan, a spokesman for Xiamen Overseas Chinese Electronics,
denies the dumping charges, suggesting the EU imposed the taxes to
protect the profits of European companies, such as Dutch-giant
Philips and France's Thomson.
(Eastday.com September 5,
2002)