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Termination of anti-circumvention action by EC
The Trade Department received a Note Verbale from the European Commission (EC) today (Tuesday) informing Hong Kong that the EC had terminated its anti-circumvention actions on imports of 3.5-inch microdisks originating in Hong Kong and eight other countries.
The EC announced the termination of the anti-circumvention case against Hong Kong and the other eight countries in the Official Journal on July 25, 1996.
The Acting Assistant Director-General of Trade, Mrs Teresa Ng, said: "Hong Kong maintains the position that despite termination of the anti-circumvention case in question, the anti-circumvention actions deployed by the EC against 3.5-inch microdisks originating in Hong Kong and eight other countries were without multilateral basis and incompatible with GATT/WTO principles.
"Nevertheless, Hong Kong welcomes the termination of the anti-circumvention actions by the EC."
Mrs Ng said the EC officials conducted on-the-spot investigation on four Hong Kong companies in January this year. The investigation revealed no evidence of transhipment and that our exports of 3.5-inch microdisks to the EU were of Hong Kong origin.
Given that circumvention could not be established for Hong Kong according to the EC's yardstick and in view of the significant decline of our imports of 3.5-inch microdisks into the EU, the EC decided to terminate the anti-circumvention investigation against Hong Kong.
With the termination of the anti-circumvention investigation, the registration requirement of imports of microdisks from Hong Kong and eight other countries ceased on July 26, 1996.
The anti-circumvention investigation against 3.5-inch microdisks originating in Hong Kong and eight other countries was initiated by the EC on October 21, 1995.
It was alleged by the Committee of European Diskette Manufacturers (DISKMA) that the anti-dumping duties imposed on 3.5-inch microdisks originating in the People's Republic of China and Taiwan were circumvented by imports of the product from Hong Kong and eight other countries.