 
  WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  G/ADP/N/1/EEC/2/Suppl.5 
G/SCM/N/1/EEC/2/Suppl.5 28 April 2004 
 
(04-1898) 
Committee on Anti-Dumping Practices 
Committee on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures  Original:   English/ 
 French/  Spanish 
 
  
NOTIFICATION OF LAWS AND REGULATIONS UNDER  
ARTICLES 18.5 AND 32.6 OF THE AGREEMENTS 
 
EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 
 
Supplement
 
  
 The following communication, dated 20 April 2004 , is being circulated at the request of the 
Delegation of the European Commission.  
_______________ 
 
 
 Pursuant to Article 18(5) of the WTO Anti-Dumping Agreement and Article 32(6) of the 
WTO Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing meas ures, please find attached a copy of Council 
Regulation (EC) No 461/2004 of 8 March 2004, wh ich amends Council Regulation (EC) No 384/96 
on protection against dumped imports from countries  not members of the European Communities and 
Council Regulation (EC) No 2026/97 on protection ag ainst subsidised imports from countries not 
members of the European Communities.  The new Re gulation was published in Official Journal of the 
European Communities L 77 of 13 March 2004.  G/ADP/N/1/EEC/2/Suppl.5 
G/SCM/N/1/EEC/2/Suppl.5 Page 2 
 
 
 COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) No 461/2004 
of 8 March 2004 
 
amending Regulation (EC) No 384/96 on protection against dumped imports from countries  
not members of the European Community and Regulation (EC) No 2026/97 on protection 
against subsidised imports from countries not members of the European Community 
 
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 
 
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the Eur opean Community, and in particular Article 133 
thereof,  Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,   
Whereas: 
 (1)  By Regulation (EC) No 384/96
1 (the Basic Antidumping Regula tion) and Regulation (EC) No 
2026/972 (the Basic Anti-subsidy Regulation) the Council adopted common rules for 
protection against dumped, and, respectively, s ubsidised imports from countries which are not 
members of the European Communities (the Basic Anti-Dumping Regulation and the Basic 
Anti-Subsidy Regulation are hereinafter join tly referred to as the Basic Regulations). 
 (2)  The Basic Regulations provide, for the imposition of definitive anti-dumping and 
countervailing measures, a proce dure under which the Council, acting by simple majority on a 
proposal by the Commission, imposes definitive measures. 
 
(3)  In the light of recent experience of the app lication of the Basic Regulations and in order to 
preserve the transparency and efficiency of th e trade defence instruments, it is considered 
necessary to revisit the way Community institu tions work together in the process of the 
imposition of definitive anti-dum ping and countervailing measures. 
 
(4)  Under the current approach, a Commission proposal will only be adopted if a simple majority 
of Member States votes in favour of such a pr oposal.  This has the effect that abstentions 
count effectively against the Commission proposal .  This in turn can result in a situation 
where a Commission proposal will not be adopted by the Council due to the number of abstentions. 
 
(5)  In order to address this problem effectivel y, the Basic Regulations have to be amended by 
requiring a simple majority of Member States in the Council to reject a Commission proposal for imposing definitive measures.  Under this procedure, measures shall be adopted by the 
Council unless the Council decides by a simple majority to reject the proposal, within a 
period of one month after submission of the proposal by the Commission. 
 
(6)  It is expedient to apply such a procedur e in order to facilitate the Community's decision-
making process without changing the respective roles of the Commission and the Council in 
the application of the Basic Regulations, and without implying any changes for the decision-
making procedures in other areas of the co mmon commercial policy or other sectors. 
                                                     
 
 1 OJ L 56, 6.3.1996, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 1972/2002 (OJ L 305, 
7.11.2002, p. 1). 
2 OJ L 288, 21.10.1997, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 1973/2002 (OJ L 305, 
7.11.2002, p. 4).  G/ADP/N/1/EEC/2/Suppl.5 
 G/SCM/N/1/EEC/2/Suppl.5  Page 3 
 
 
  
(7)  For reasons of consistent application of decision-making procedures under the Basic 
Regulations, the procedures for other decisions  by the Council under the Basic Regulations 
which provide essentially the same procedure as for the imposition of definitive measures 
should be aligned as well.  Accordingly, the a bove approach should be adopted also for the 
procedures regarding reviews, reinvestigation,  circumvention and suspension of measures. 
 (8)  The Basic Anti-dumping Regulation establishes mandatory time limits for the completion of 
investigation procedures initiated pursuant to Article 5(9) of the Basic Anti-dumping 
Regulation while review investigations, initiate d pursuant to Articles 11(2), (3) and (4) and 
reinvestigations pursuant to Article 12 of the Basic Antidumping Regulation, are subject to an 
indicative time limit only. 
 (9)  Anti-dumping measures remain in force pending the outcome of a review pursuant to 
Article 11(2) of the Basic Anti-dumping Regulati on.  Consequently, unusually lengthy review 
investigations pursuant to such Article ma y undermine legal certainty and cause adverse 
effects for interested parties.  Similar non desirable effects may result from overly lengthy 
investigations in the context of reviews pursuant  to Articles 11(3) and (4 ) and reinvestigations 
pursuant to Article 12 of the Basic Antidumping Regulation. 
 
(10)  It is therefore appropriate to introduce mandatory time limits also for the completion of 
review investigations pursuant to Articles 11(2) , (3) and (4) and reinvestigations pursuant to 
Article 12 of the Basic Anti-dumping Regulation. 
 (11)  The various types of review investigati ons have different potential scopes and degrees of 
complexity.  Due account should be given to these differences when setting the appropriate 
time limits for completion. 
 (12)  First, reviews pursuant to Articles 11(2) and (3) of the Basic Anti-dumping Regulation may, 
in certain circumstances, present the same complexity as new proceedings pursuant to 
Article 5(9), for instance in terms of the scope of  the investigation or the number of interested 
parties concerned.  Consequently, while thes e review investigations should normally be 
completed within the existing indicative time limit of 12 months, the mandatory time limit for completion should be equal, but not longer, than that of the 15-month period set for the completion of new proceedings. 
 
(13)  Second, reviews pursuant to Article 11(4) a nd reinvestigations pursuant to Article 12 of the 
Basic Antidumping Regulation present a lesser degree of complexity than reviews pursuant to Articles 11(2) and (3) of the Basic Anti-dumping Re gulation.  Accordingly, the time limit for 
the completion of such reviews should be shorte r.  For review investigations pursuant to 
Article 11(4), it is considered that the time li mit for completion should be set at nine months. 
This limit is in line with the maximum peri od allowed for registration of imports under 
Article 14(5) of the Basic Anti-dumping Regulati on.  As imports are registered pending the 
completion of a review pursuant to Article 11(4), the time limit for the completion of such a review should not be longer than the time fra me during which the imports concerned by the 
review may be subject to registration. 
 
(14)  Third, while reinvestigations pursuant to Ar ticle 12 should normally be completed within the 
existing indicative time limit of six months, it is  considered appropriate to set the mandatory 
time limit at nine months, as a longer period may be necessary to complete the investigation if revised normal values have to be considered.  In  addition, imports subject to reinvestigation 
pursuant to Article 12 may, like imports subjec t to 11(4) reviews, also be subject to G/ADP/N/1/EEC/2/Suppl.5 
G/SCM/N/1/EEC/2/Suppl.5 Page 4 
 
 
 registration pursuant to Article 14(5).  Conseque ntly, the same maximum time limit of nine 
months as for registration should apply to reinvestigations pursuant to Article 12. 
 (15)  Recitals 8 to 14 apply, mutatis mutandis , to reviews under Articles 18, 19 and 20 of the Basic 
Anti-subsidy Regulation. 
 (16)  It is considered prudent to provide for a phase-in of deadlines in reviews, in view of the 
resulting demands for the meeting of such d eadlines on human resources.  Such a phase-in 
period will facilitate the appropriate  allocation of resources over time. 
 
(17)  Information provided to Member States in  the Advisory Committee is often of a highly 
technical nature and involves an elaborate econom ic and legal analysis.  In order to provide 
Member States with sufficient time to consider this information, it should be sent at the latest 
10 days before the date of a meeting set by  the Chairman of the Advisory Committee. 
 
(18)  Article 8(9) of the Basic Anti-Dumping Regulation stipulates, inter alia , that in case of 
withdrawal of undertakings by any party, a de finitive duty is to be imposed in accordance 
with Article 9 on the basis of the facts establis hed within the context of the investigation 
which led to the undertakings.  This provision has led to a time-consuming double-proceeding 
consisting of both a Commission Decision withdrawing the acceptance of the undertaking and 
a Council Regulation re-imposing the duty.  Taki ng into account that this provision does not 
leave any discretion to the Council as to the introduction of a duty to be imposed following the breach or withdrawal of an undertaking or as to its level, it is considered appropriate to 
modify the provisions in Articles 8(1), (5) and (9) in order to clarify the Commission's responsibility and to allow withdrawal of an undertaking and application of the duty by one 
single legal act.  It is also necessary to ensure  that the withdrawal procedure is terminated 
within a time limit of normally six months and in no case more than nine months in order to ensure a proper enforcement of the measure in force. 
 (19)  Recital 18 applies, mutatis mutandis , to undertakings under Article 13 of the Basic Anti-
subsidy Regulation. 
 
(20)  Article 12(1) of the Basic Anti-Dumping Re gulation indicates that reinvestigations pursuant 
to that Article are initiated on the basis of ev idence submitted by the Community industry. 
Other interested parties may equally have an interest in such reinvestigations which are 
aiming at correcting the effects of  the absorption of the duty by the exporter.  It is therefore 
necessary to amend that Article in order to ex tend the possibility of re questing the initiation of 
anti-absorption investigations to an y other interested party.  It is also necessary, in order to 
assess whether absorption exists or not, to include  into the notion of movement of prices the 
decrease of export prices since this is one of the possible situations in which, by lowering the 
price level on the Community market, the remedi al effect of the measure may be undermined. 
 
(21)  Recital 20 applies, mutatis mutandis , to Article 19(3) of the Basic Anti-subsidy Regulation. 
 (22)  Moreover, it has to be clarified that the increase in the amount of the anti-dumping duty 
imposed following a reinvestigation pursuant to Article 12(2) of the Basic Anti-dumping 
Regulation has to be limited to the maximum amount that could have possibly been absorbed, 
which is the amount of the duty in force prior to that reinvestigation. 
 (23)  Given that Article 13(3) of the Basic Anti-Dumping Regulation does not expressly mention 
the parties who have the right to request the in itiation of anti-circumvention investigations, it 
is desirable to clarify which parties have this right.  G/ADP/N/1/EEC/2/Suppl.5 
 G/SCM/N/1/EEC/2/Suppl.5  Page 5 
 
 
  
(24)  Past experience has shown that it is also  desirable to clarify which practices constitute 
circumvention of the measures in place.  Circumvention practices may take place either inside or outside the Community.  It is consequently  necessary to provide that exemptions from the 
extended duties which may already be grante d to importers under the current Basic Anti-
dumping Regulation may also be granted to exporters when duties are being extended to address circumvention taking place outside the Community. 
 (25)  In order to ensure proper enforcement of measures, it is advisable to amend the terms of 
Article 19(6) of the Basic Anti-Dumping Re gulation as regards the use of information 
gathered in the context of an investigation, for the purposes of initiating another investigation 
within the same proceeding. 
 (26)  Recitals 23 to 25 above apply, mutatis mutandis , to Articles 23 and 29(6) of the Basic Anti-
subsidy Regulation. 
 (27)  In order to ensure a better enforcement of  measures, it is necessary to provide, in a new 
paragraph of Article 14 of the Basic Anti-dum ping Regulation, for the possibility for the 
Commission to request Member States to supply, subject to the respect of confidentiality rules 
contained in the Basic Regulations, information to be used for monitoring price undertakings 
and verifying the level of effectiveness of the me asures in force.  Similar provisions need also 
be introduced by a new paragraph within Ar ticle 24 of the Basic Anti-subsidy Regulation, 
 HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: 
 
Article 1 
 
Regulation (EC) No 384/96 is hereby amended as follows: 
 
1.  Article 8(1) shall be replaced by the following:  
‘1.  Upon condition that a provisional affirm ative determination of dumping and injury 
has been made, the Commission may accept satisfactory voluntary undertaking offers submitted by any exporter to revise its prices or to cease exports at dumped prices, if, after 
specific consultation of the Advisory Committee, it is satisfied that the injurious effect of the 
dumping is thereby eliminated.  In such a case and as long as such undertakings are in force, 
the provisional duties imposed by the Commis sion in accordance with Article 7(1) or the 
definitive duties imposed by th e Council in accordance with Ar ticle 9(4) as the case may be 
shall not apply to the relevant imports of  the product concerned manufactured by the 
companies referred to in the Commission deci sion accepting undertakings, as subsequently 
amended.  Price increases under such undertak ings shall not be higher than necessary to 
eliminate the margin of dumping and they should  be less than the margin of dumping if such 
increases would be adequate to remove th e injury to the Co mmunity industry.’; 
 2.  Article 8(9) shall be replaced by the following:  
‘9.  In case of breach or wit hdrawal of undertakings by any party to the undertaking, or in 
case of withdrawal of acceptance of the unde rtaking by the Commission, the acceptance of 
the undertaking shall, after consultation, be withdrawn by Commission Decision or Commission Regulation, as appropriate, and th e provisional duty which has been imposed by 
the Commission in accordance with Article 7 or  the definitive duty which has been imposed 
by the Council in accordance with Article 9(4) sh all automatically apply, provided that the G/ADP/N/1/EEC/2/Suppl.5 
G/SCM/N/1/EEC/2/Suppl.5 Page 6 
 
 
 exporter concerned has, except where he himsel f has withdrawn the undertaking, been given 
an opportunity to comment.  Any interested party or Member St ate may submit information showing prima facie evidence 
of a breach of an undertaking.  The subseque nt assessment of whether or not a breach of an 
undertaking has occurred shall normally be conc luded within six months, but in no case later 
than nine months following a duly substantia ted request.  The Commission may request the 
assistance of the competent authorities of the Member States in the monitoring of 
undertakings.’; 
 
3.  Article 9(4) shall be replaced by the following:  
‘4.  Where the facts as finally established s how that there is dumping and injury caused 
thereby, and the Community interest calls fo r intervention in accordance with Article 21, a 
definitive anti-dumping duty shall be imposed by the Council, acting on a proposal submitted 
by the Commission after consultation of the A dvisory Committee.  The proposal shall be 
adopted by the Council unless it decides by a simple  majority to reject the proposal, within a 
period of one month after its submission by the Commission.  Where provisional duties are in force, a proposal for definitive action shall be  submitted not later than one month before the 
expiry of such duties.  The amount of the anti-dumping duty shall not exceed the margin of 
dumping established but it should be less than the margin if such lesser duty would be 
adequate to remove the injury  to the Community industry.’; 
 
4.  Article 11(5) shall be replaced by the following:  
‘5.  The relevant provisions of this Regula tion with regard to procedures and the conduct 
of investigations, excluding those relating to tim e limits, shall apply to any review carried out 
pursuant to paragraphs 2, 3 and 4 of this Artic le.  Reviews carried out pursuant to paragraphs 
2 and 3 shall be carried out e xpeditiously and shall normally be  concluded within 12 months 
of the date of initiation of the review.  In an y event, reviews pursuant to paragraphs 2 and 3 
shall in all cases be concluded within 15 months  of initiation.  Review s pursuant to paragraph 
4 shall in all cases be concluded within nine m onths of the date of initiation.  If a review 
carried out pursuant to paragraph 2 is initiate d while a review under paragraph 3 is ongoing in 
the same proceeding, the review pursuant o para graph 3 shall be concluded at the same time 
as foreseen above for the review pursuant to paragraph 2. 
 
The Commission shall submit a proposal for action to the Council not later than one month 
before the expiry of the above deadlines.  If the investigation is not completed with in the above deadlines,  the measures shall: 
 - expire in investigations pursuan t to paragraph 2 of this Article, 
 
- expire in the case of investigations carried out pursuant to paragr aphs 2 and 3 of this 
Article in parallel, where either the inves tigation pursuant to paragraph 2 was initiated 
while a review under paragraph 3 was ongoing in the same proceeding or where such 
reviews were initiated at the same time, or  
 
-  remain unchanged in investigations pursuan t to paragraphs 3 and 4 of this Article. 
 A notice announcing the actual expiry or maintenance of the measures pursuant to this paragraph shall then be published in the Official Journal of the European Union .’;  G/ADP/N/1/EEC/2/Suppl.5 
 G/SCM/N/1/EEC/2/Suppl.5  Page 7 
 
 
 5.  Article 12(1) shall be replaced by the following: 
 
‘1.  Where the Community industry or any othe r interested party submit, normally within 
two years from the entry into force of the meas ures, sufficient information showing that, after 
the original investigation period and prior to  or following the imposition of measures, export 
prices have decreased or that there has been no movement, or insufficient movement in the resale prices or subsequent selling prices of the imported product in the Community, the investigation may, after consultation, be re opened to examine whether the measure has had 
effects on the abovementioned prices. 
 
The investigation may also be reopened, under th e conditions set out above, at the initiative of 
the Commission or at the request of a Member State.’;  
6.  Article 12(2), last sentence, shall be replaced by the following: 
 
‘Where it is considered that the conditions of  Article 12(1) are met due to a fall in export 
prices which has occurred after the original inv estigation period and prior to or following the 
imposition of measures, dumping margins may be r ecalculated to take account of such lower 
export prices.’;  
7.  Article 12(3) shall be replaced by the following: 
 
‘3.  Where a reinvestigation pursuant to th is Article shows increased dumping, the 
measures in force may, after consultation, be amended by the Council, acting on a proposal 
from the Commission in accordance with the new findings on export prices.  The proposal 
shall be adopted by the Council unless it decides by  a simple majority to reject the proposal, 
within a period of one month after its subm ission by the Commission.  The amount of the 
anti-dumping duty imposed pursuant to this Artic le shall not exceed twice the amount of the 
duty imposed initially by the Council.’;  
8.  Article 12(4) shall be replaced by the following: 
 
‘4.  The relevant provisions of Article 5 and 6 shall apply to any reinvestigation carried 
out pursuant to this Article, except that such re investigation shall be carried out expeditiously 
and shall normally be concluded within six months of the date of initiation of the 
reinvestigation.  In any event, such reinvestigations shall in a ll cases be concl uded within nine 
months of initiation of the reinvestigation. 
 
The Commission shall submit a proposal for action to the Council not later than one month before the expiry of the above deadline.  If the reinvestigation is not completed within  the above deadlines, measures shall remain 
unchanged.  A notice announcing the maintenance of the measures pursuant to this paragraph 
shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Union .’; 
 
9.  Article 13(1) shall be replaced by the following:  
‘1.  Anti-dumping duties imposed pursuant to this Regulation may be extended to imports 
from third countries, of the like product, whether s lightly modified or not; or to imports of the 
slightly modified like product from the country subject to measures; or parts thereof, when 
circumvention of the measures in force is taking place.  Anti-dumping duties not exceeding the residual antidumping duty imposed in accordance with Article 9(5) of this Regulation may G/ADP/N/1/EEC/2/Suppl.5 
G/SCM/N/1/EEC/2/Suppl.5 Page 8 
 
 
 be extended to imports from companies bene fiting from individual duties in the countries 
subject to measures when circumvention of the measures in force is taking place. Circumvention shall be defined as a change in the pattern of trade between third countries and 
the Community or between individual companies in the country subject to measures and the 
Community, which stems from a practice, process or  work for which there is insufficient due 
cause or economic justification other than the imposition of the duty, and where there is evidence of injury or that the remedial effects of the duty are being undermined in terms of 
the prices and/or quantities of the like product, and where there is evidence of dumping in relation to the normal values previously estab lished for the like product, if necessary in 
accordance with the provisions of Article 2. 
 
The practice, process or work referred to in paragraph 1 includes, inter alia , the slight 
modification of the product concerned to make it fall under customs codes which are 
normally not subject to the measures, provide d that the modification does not alter its 
essential characteristics; the consignment of the product subject to measures via third 
countries; the reorganisation by exporters or pr oducers of their patterns and channels of sales 
in the country subject to measures in order to eventually have their products exported to the 
Community through producers benefiting from an individual duty rate lower than that applicable to the products of the manufacturers; and, in the circumstances indicated below under Article 13(2), the assembly of parts by an assembly operation in the Community or a 
third country.’; 
 
10.  Article 13(3) shall be replaced by the following:  
‘3.  Investigations shall be initiated pursu ant to this Article on the initiative of the 
Commission or at the request of a Member State or any interested party on the basis of 
sufficient evidence regarding the factors set out in paragraph 1.  Initiations shall be made, 
after consultation of the Advisory Committee, by Commission Regulation which may also instruct the customs authorities to make impor ts subject to registration in accordance with 
Article 14(5) or to request guarantees.  Investig ations shall be carried out by the Commission, 
which may be assisted by customs authorities a nd shall be concluded within nine months. 
When the facts as finally ascertain ed justify the extension of m easures, this shall be done by 
the Council, acting on a proposal submitted by the Commission, after consultation of the 
Advisory Committee.  The proposal shall be a dopted by the Council unless it decides by a 
simple majority to reject the proposal, within  a period of one month after its submission by 
the Commission.  The extension shall take e ffect from the date on which registration was 
imposed pursuant to Article 14(5) or on wh ich guarantees were requested.  The relevant 
procedural provisions of this Regulation with  regard to initiations and the conduct of 
investigations shall apply pu rsuant to this Article.’; 
 
11.  Article 13(4) shall be replaced by the following:  
‘4.  Imports shall not be subject to regist ration pursuant to Article 14(5) or measures 
where they are traded by companies whic h benefit from exemptions.  Requests for 
exemptions duly supported by evidence shall be submitted within the ti me limits established 
in the Commission Regulation initiating the inves tigation.  Where the circumventing practice, 
process or work takes place outside the Commun ity, exemptions may be granted to producers 
of the product concerned that can show that they  are not related to any producer subject to the 
measures and that are found not to be engage d in circumvention practices as defined in 
Article 13(1) and 13(2).  Where the circumventing practice, process or work takes place inside the Community, exemptions may be grante d to importers that can show that they are 
not related to producers subject to the measures.  G/ADP/N/1/EEC/2/Suppl.5 
 G/SCM/N/1/EEC/2/Suppl.5  Page 9 
 
 
  
These exemptions are granted by decision of  the Commission after consultation of the 
Advisory Committee or decision of the Council imposing measures and shall remain valid for 
the period and under the conditions set down therein. 
 
Provided that the conditions set in Article 11(4)  are met, exemptions may also be granted 
after the conclusion of the investigation l eading to the extension of the measures.  
 Provided that at least one year has lapsed from the extension of the measures, and in case the 
number of parties requesting or potentially re questing an exemption is significant, the 
Commission may decide to initiate a review of  the extension of the measures.  Any such 
review shall be conducted in accordance with the provisions of Article 11(5) as applicable to 
reviews pursuant to Article 11(3).’; 
 
12.  Article 14(4) shall be replaced by the following: 
 
‘4.  In the Community interest, measures impo sed pursuant to this Regulation may, after 
consultation of the Advisory Committee, be su spended by a decision of the Commission for a 
period of nine months.  The suspension may be  extended for a further period, not exceeding 
one year, if the Council so decides, acting on a proposal from the Commission.  The proposal 
shall be adopted by the Council unless it decides by  a simple majority to reject the proposal, 
within a period of one month after its submission by the Commission.  Measures may only be suspended where market conditions have temporar ily changed to an extent that injury would 
be unlikely to resume as a result of the suspensi on, and provided that the Community industry 
has been given an opportunity to comment a nd these comments have been taken into account. 
Measures may, at any time and after consultation, be reinstated if the reason for suspension is 
no longer applicable.’;  
13.  In Article 14 the following  paragraph shall be added: 
 
‘7.  Without prejudice to paragraph 6, the Commission may request Member States, on a 
case by case basis, to supply information necessary to monitor efficiently the application of 
measures.  In this respect, the provisions of Articles 6(3) and 6(4) shall apply.  Any data submitted by Member States pursuant to this Ar ticle shall be covered by the provisions of 
Article 19(6).’; 
 
14.  Article 15(2) shall be replaced by the following: 
 
‘2.  The Committee sha ll meet when convened by its chairman.  He shall provide the 
Member States, as promptly as possible, but no later than 10 working days before the 
meeting, with all relevant information.’;  
15.  Article 19(6) shall be replaced by the following: 
 
‘6.  Information received pursuant to this Regulation shall be used only for the purpose 
for which it was requested.  This provision shall not preclude the use of information received in the context of one investigation for the purpo se of initiating other investigations within the 
same proceeding in relation to the product concerned.’ 
 
Article 2 
 
Regulation (EC) No 2026/97 is  hereby amended as follows: G/ADP/N/1/EEC/2/Suppl.5 
G/SCM/N/1/EEC/2/Suppl.5 Page 10 
 
 
  
1.  Article 13(1) shall be replaced by the following:  
‘1.  Upon condition that a provisional affirm ative determination of  subsidisation and 
injury has been made, the Commission may accept satisfactory voluntary undertakings offers 
under which:   (a)  the country of origin and/or export agr ees to eliminate or limit the subsidy or take 
other measures concerning its effects; or 
 
(b)  any exporter undertakes to revise its prices or to cease exports to the area in question 
as long as such exports benefit from count ervailable subsidies, so that the 
Commission, after specific consultation of th e Advisory Committee, is satisfied that 
the injurious effect of the s ubsidies is thereby eliminated. 
 
In such a case and as long as such undertakings are in force, the provisional duties imposed 
by the Commission in accordance with Article 12( 3) and the definitive duties imposed by the 
Council in accordance with Article 15(1) shall not apply to the relevant imports of the product 
concerned manufactured by the companies re ferred to in the Commission decision accepting 
undertakings and in any subsequent amendment of such decision. 
 
Price increases under such undertakings shall not  be higher than is necessary to offset the 
amount of countervailable subsidies, and shoul d be less than the amount of countervailable 
subsidies if such increases would be adequate  to remove the injury to the Community 
industry.’; 
 
2.  Article 13(9) shall be replaced by the following:  
‘9.  In case of breach or wit hdrawal of undertakings by any party to the undertaking, or in 
case of withdrawal of acceptance of the unde rtaking by the Commission, the acceptance of 
the undertaking shall, after Consultation, be withdrawn by Commission Decision or 
Commission Regulation, as appropriate, and th e provisional duty which has been imposed by 
the Commission in accordance with Article 12 or the definitive duty which has been imposed 
by the Council in accordance with Article 15( 1), shall apply, provided that the exporter 
concerned, or the country of origin and/or expor t has, except in the case of withdrawal of the 
undertaking by the exporter or such country, been given an opportunity to comment. 
 
Any interested party or Member State may subm it information, showing prima facie evidence 
of a breach of an undertaking.  The subseque nt assessment of whether or not a breach of an 
undertaking has occurred shall normally be conc luded within six months, but in no case later 
than nine months following a duly substantia ted request.  The Commission may request the 
assistance of the competent authorities of the Member States in the monitoring of 
undertakings.’; 
 3.  Article 15(1) shall be replaced by the following:  
‘1.  Where the facts as finally established show  the existence of countervailable subsidies 
and injury caused thereby, and the Community interest calls for intervention in accordance 
with Article 31, a definitive countervailing duty shall be imposed by the Council, acting on a 
proposal submitted by the Commission after consultation of the Advisory Committee.  The proposal shall be adopted by the Council unless it decides by a simple majority to reject the proposal, within a period of one month after its submission by the Commission.  Where  G/ADP/N/1/EEC/2/Suppl.5 
 G/SCM/N/1/EEC/2/Suppl.5  Page 11 
 
 
 provisional duties are in force, a proposal rega rding definitive action shall be submitted not 
later than one month before the expiry of such  duties.  No measures shall be imposed if the 
subsidy or subsidies are withdrawn or it has b een demonstrated that the subsidies no longer 
confer any benefit on the exporters involved.  The amount of the countervailing duty shall not 
exceed the amount of countervailable subsidies est ablished but it should be less than the total 
amount of countervailable subsidies if such l esser duty would be adequate to remove the 
injury to the Community industry.’; 
 4.  Article 19(3) shall be replaced by the following: 
 
‘3.  Where the countervailing duties imposed ar e less than the amount of countervailable 
subsidies found, an interim review may be in itiated if the Community producers or any other 
interested party submit, normally within two y ears from the entry into force of the measures, 
sufficient evidence that, after the original inv estigation period and prior to or following the 
imposition of measures, export prices have decreased or that there has been no movement, or 
insufficient movement of resale prices of the imported product in the Community.  If the 
investigation proves the allegations to be co rrect, countervailing duties may be increased to 
achieve the price increase required to remove  injury; however, the increased duty level shall 
not exceed the amount of the countervailable subsidies. 
 
The interim review may also be initiated, unde r the conditions set out above, at the initiative 
of the Commission or at the request of a Member State.’;  
5.  Article 22(1) shall be replaced by the following:  
‘1.  The relevant provisions of this Regula tion with regard to procedures and the conduct 
of investigations, excluding those relating to tim e limits, shall apply to any review carried out 
pursuant to Article 18, 19 and 20.   Reviews carried out pursuant to Articles 18 and 19 shall 
be carried out expeditiously and shall normally be concluded within 12 months of the date of 
initiation of the review.  In any event, reviews pursuant to Article 18 and 19 shall in all cases 
be concluded within 15 months of  initiation.  Reviews pursuant to Article 20 shall in all cases 
be concluded within nine months  of the date of initiation.  If a review carried out pursuant to 
Article 18 is initiated while a review under Artic le 19 is ongoing in the same proceeding, the 
review pursuant to Article 19 shall be conclude d at the same time as foreseen above for the 
review pursuant to Article 18.  
The Commission shall submit a proposal for action to the Council not later than one month 
before the expiry of the above deadlines.  If the investigation is not completed with in the above deadlines,  the measures shall: 
 - expire in investigations pursuant to Article 18, 
 
- expire in the case of investigations carried out pursuant to Articles 18 and 19 in 
parallel, where either the investigation pursuant to Article 18 was initiated while a 
review under Article 19 was ongoing in the same proceeding or where such reviews were initiated at the same time, or 
 
- remain unchanged in investigati ons pursuant to Articles 19 and 20. 
 A notice announcing the actual expiry or maintenance of the measures pursuant to this paragraph shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Union .’; G/ADP/N/1/EEC/2/Suppl.5 
G/SCM/N/1/EEC/2/Suppl.5 Page 12 
 
 
  
6.  Article 23(1) shall be replaced by the following:  
‘1. Countervailing duties imposed pursuant to  this Regulation may be extended to 
imports from third countries, of the like product, whether slightly modified or not; or to 
imports of the slightly modified like product fro m the country subject to measures; or parts 
thereof, when circumvention of the measures in force is taking place.  Countervailing duties not exceeding the residual countervailing duty imposed in accordance with Article 15(2) of this Regulation may be extended to imports from companies benefiting from individual duties 
in the countries subject to measures when circ umvention of the measures in force is taking 
place.  Circumvention shall be defined as a ch ange in the pattern of trade between third 
countries and the Community or between individual companies in the country subject to measures and the Community, which stems from a practice, process or work for which there 
is insufficient due cause or economic justification other than the imposition of the duty, and 
where there is evidence of injury or that the remedial effects of the duty are being undermined 
in terms of the prices and/or quantities of the like product and that the imported like product 
and/or parts thereof still benefit from the subsidy. 
 
The practice, process or work referred to in paragraph 1 includes, inter alia , the slight 
modification of the product concerned to make it fall under customs codes which are 
normally not subject to the measures, provide d that the modification does not alter its 
essential characteristics; the consignment of the product subject to measures via third countries; and the reorganisation by exporters or  producers of their patterns and channels of 
sales in the country subject to measures in order to eventually have their products exported to the Community through producers benefiting from an individual duty rate lower than that 
applicable to the products  of the manufacturers.’; 
 7.  Article 23(2) and (3) shall be replaced by the following:  
‘2.  Investigations shall be initiated pursu ant to this Article on the initiative of the 
Commission or at the request of a Member State or of any interested party on the basis of 
sufficient evidence regarding the factors set out in paragraph 1.  Initiations shall be made, 
after consultation of the Advisory Committee, by Commission Regulation which may also instruct the customs authorities to make impor ts subject to registration in accordance with 
Article 24(5) or to request guarantees.  Investig ations shall be carried out by the Commission, 
which may be assisted by customs authorities a nd shall be concluded within nine months. 
When the facts as finally ascertain ed justify the extension of m easures, this shall be done by 
the Council, acting on a proposal submitted by the Commission after consultation of the 
Advisory Committee.  The proposal shall be a dopted by the Council unless it decides by a 
simple majority to reject the proposal, within  a period of one month after its submission by 
the Commission.  The extension shall take e ffect from the date on which registration was 
imposed pursuant to Article 24(5) or on wh ich guarantees were requested.  The relevant 
procedural provisions of this Regulation with  regard to initiations and the conduct of 
investigations shall apply pursuant to this Article.  
3.  Imports shall not be subject to registration pursuant to Article 24(5) or measures where they 
are traded by companies which benefit from exemptions.  Requests for exemptions duly 
supported by evidence shall be submitted with in the time limits established in the 
Commission Regulation initiating the investiga tion.  Where the circumventing practice, 
process or work takes place outside the Commun ity, exemptions may be granted to producers 
of the product concerned that can show that they  are not related to any producer subject to the 
measures and that are found not to be engage d in circumvention practices as defined in  G/ADP/N/1/EEC/2/Suppl.5 
 G/SCM/N/1/EEC/2/Suppl.5  Page 13 
 
 
 Article 23(1).  Where the circumventing practice, process or work takes place inside the 
Community, exemptions may be granted to importe rs that can show that they are not related 
to producers subject to the measures.  
 
These exemptions are granted by decision of  the Commission after consultation of the 
Advisory Committee or decision of the Council imposing measures and shall remain valid for 
the period and under the conditions set down therein. 
 
Provided that the conditions set in Article 20 ar e met, exemptions may also be granted after 
the conclusion of the investigation leading to the extension of the measures. 
 Provided that at least one year has lapsed from the extension of the measures, and in case the number of parties requesting or potentially re questing an exemption is significant, the 
Commission may decide to initiate a review of  the extension of the measures.  Any such 
review shall be conducted in accordance with the provisions of Article 22(1) as applicable to 
reviews under Article 19.’; 
 8.  Article 24(4) shall be replaced by the following:  
‘4.  In the Community interest, measures impo sed pursuant to this Regulation may, after 
consultation of the Advisory Committee, be su spended by a decision of the Commission for a 
period of nine months.  The suspension may be  extended for a further period, not exceeding 
one year, if the Council so decides, acting on a proposal from the Commission.  The proposal 
shall be adopted by the Council unless it decides by  a simple majority to reject the proposal, 
within a period of one month after its submission by the Commission.  Measures may only be 
suspended where market conditions have temporar ily changed to an extent that injury would 
be unlikely to resume as a result of the suspensi on, and provided that the Community industry 
has been given an opportunity to comment a nd these comments have been taken into account. 
Measures may, at any time and after consultation, be reinstated if the reason for suspension is 
no longer applicable.’; 
 
9.  In Article 24 the following  paragraph shall be added: 
 
‘7.  Without prejudice to paragraph 6, the Commission may request Member States, on a case by case basis, to supply information necessary to monitor efficiently the application of 
measures.  In this respect, the provisions of Articles 11(3) and (4) shall apply.  Any data 
submitted by Member States pursuant to this Ar ticle shall be covered by the provisions of 
Article 29(6).’; 
 10.  Article 25(2) shall be replaced by the following:  
‘2.  The Committee sha ll meet when convened by its chairman.  He shall provide the 
Member States, as promptly as possible, but no later than 10 working days before the 
meeting, with all relevant information.’  
 11.  Article 29(6) shall be replaced by the following: 
 
‘6.  Information received pursuant to this Regulation shall be used only for the purpose 
for which it was requested.  This provision shall not preclude the use of information received in the context of one investigation for the purpo se of initiating other investigations within the 
same proceeding concerning the same like product.’ G/ADP/N/1/EEC/2/Suppl.5 
G/SCM/N/1/EEC/2/Suppl.5 Page 14 
 
 
  
Article 3 
 
This Regulation shall apply to all investig ations initiated pursuant to Regulation (EC) 
No 384/96 and Regulation (EC) No 2026/97 after the entry into force of this Regulation with the 
exception of: 
 (a)  Article 1(3), (7), (10), (12) and (14) and Article 2(3), (7), (8) and (10) of this 
Regulation which shall apply also to pending investigations; and 
 
(b)  Article 1(4) and (8) and Article 2(5) of this Regulation which shall only apply two 
years after the entry into force of this Re gulation to investigations initiated pursuant 
to Articles 11(3), 11(4) and 12 of Regula tion (EC) No 384/96 and Articles 19 and 20 
of Regulation (EC) No 2026/97. 
 
Article 4 
 
This Regulation shall enter into force on the 7th day following that of its publication in the 
Official Journal of the European Union . 
 
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States. 
 
Done at Brussels, 8 March 2004.  
For the Council 
The President 
D. AHERN 
 
__________ 
 
 