03 September 2021

2020 REPORT ON EU TRADE DEFENCE ACTIVITY

Earlier this week, the European Commission published the 39th Annual Report on the EU’s anti-dumping, anti-subsidy and safeguard activities and the use of trade defence instruments by third countries targeting the EU in 2020.

The report shows that in 2020, the Commission launched 15 investigations, compared to 16 in 2019, and imposed 17 provisional and definitive measures, compared to 15 in 2019. The Commission also launched 28 reviews, compared to 23 the previous year. The highest number of EU trade defence measures concerns imports from China (99 measures) and Russia (9 measures). In 2020, the Commission also strengthened its action against subsidies granted by third countries. For the first time, the Commission addressed cross-border subsidies given by a country to enterprises located in another country for exports to the EU.

The importance of monitoring trade defence action taken by third countries was again evident in 2020. The report outlines the Commission's activities to ensure that WTO rules are correctly applied, and procedural errors and legal inconsistencies are addressed to avoid any misuse of trade defence instruments by third countries. There was a renewed focus on the monitoring of measures in place in 2020, including changes to surveillance practices to ensure the ongoing effectiveness of the trade defence instruments. This also involved customs authorities, EU industry, and in certain instances, the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF).

Source: European Commission