Commission Regulation (EC) No 76/2002 of 17 January 2002 introducing prior Community surveillance of imports of certain iron and steel products covered by the ECSC and EC Treaties originating in certain third countries

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 3285/94 of 22 December 1994 on common rules for imports and repealing Regulation (EC) No 518/94^f1, as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 2474/2000^f2, and in particular Article 11 thereof,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 519/94 of 7 March 1994 on common rules for imports from certain third countries and repealing Regulations (EEC) No 1765/82, (EEC) No 1766/82 and (EEC) No 3420/83^f3, as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 1138/98^f4, and in particular Article 9(1) thereof,

Consultations having taken place within the committees set up under the Regulations referred to above,

Whereas:

In accordance with Regulations (EC) No 3285/94 and (EC) No 519/94, products covered by the Treaty establishing the European Coal and Steel Community are subject to the common rules for imports, and it is therefore necessary that the arrangements for Community surveillance measures in respect of ECSC products be adopted in accordance with those Regulations.

The situation on the steel market has worsened considerably in 2001 under the combined impact of a number of factors, chief among them being a marked downturn in the world economy evident from the outset of the year and the recession that began to affect some economies, including that of the United States, in the latter half of the year.

The steel market has also been unsettled by the uncertainty and hedging caused by the possibility of import restrictions on the US market following the US administration's ‘Section 201’ safeguard investigation.

Should import restrictions actually be applied on the US market, they are likely to cause major fluctuations in the structure of international trade, and in particular the deflection of trade towards the Community market. Such deflection could seriously harm the Community steel industry.

1. A..

   Production. Production of crude steel in the Community in 2001 is expected to be about 159 million tonnes. This estimate is not only 2,5 % lower than production in 2000 (163,2 million tonnes), it is also lower than the levels recorded in 1997 (159,4 million tonnes) and 1998 (159,7 million tonnes).

2. B..

   Imports. Imports of ECSC iron and steel products into the Community from all third countries will remain appreciably the same as in 2000, at about 25 million tonnes. By way of comparison, Community imports of these products totalled 12,2 million tonnes in 1996. This means that steel imports into the Community have more than doubled in the past five years.

3. C..

   Exports. At a probable level of about 21 million tonnes, Community exports of ECSC iron and steel products in 2001 are about 8 % down on the previous year. By way of comparison, Community imports of these products amounted to 28 million tonnes in 1996. Community exports to the US and Canada have been hit particularly hard, falling by an estimated 36 % and 32 % respectively. This trend will worsen in 2002 if restrictions are introduced on the US market. For 2001 as a whole, the Community is expected to be a net importer of iron and steel products, with a trade deficit in excess of 4 million tonnes. In 1996 the Community recorded a trade surplus of the order of 15,8 million tonnes.

4. D..

   Prices. Prices for iron and steel products in 2001 were 18 % lower on average than in 2000.

Since the scope of the Section 201 safeguard investigation includes pipes and tubes, the possibility of US restrictions on these products cannot be excluded. Prior surveillance should therefore be extended to pipes and tubes.

The Community's external trade statistics are not available within the periods established by Commission Regulation (EC) No 1917/2000^f5, as amended by Regulation (EC) No 1669/2001^f6.

The interests of the Community require that imports of certain iron and steel products should be subject to prior Community surveillance in order to provide statistical information permitting rapid analysis of import trends.

The completion of the internal market requires that the formalities to be accomplished by Community importers be identical wherever the goods may be cleared.

Release for free circulation of the products covered by this Regulation should be made subject to presentation of a surveillance document meeting uniform criteria.

That document should, on simple application by the importer, be endorsed by the authorities of the Member States within a certain period but without the importer thereby acquiring any right to import. The document should therefore be valid only as long as the import rules remain unchanged.

The surveillance documents issued for the purposes of Community surveillance must be valid throughout the Community, regardless of the Member State of issue.

The Member States and the Commission should exchange the information resulting from Community surveillance as fully as possible.

The issue of surveillance documents, while subject to standard conditions at Community level, is to be the responsibility of the national authorities.

It should be reiterated that for certain iron and steel products the issue of a surveillance document is subject to presentation of an export document in accordance with arrangements established within the framework of double-checking agreements with certain third countries, and the present Regulation does not apply to products originating in those countries which are subject to such a double-checking system,

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