TRA recommends new measures to protect UK excavator industry
A new anti-dumping measure ranging from 33.03% to 83.5% could benefit UK excavator producers by up to £3.4 million per year, the TRA has found.
The Trade Remedies Authority (TRA) has proposed that a new anti-dumping measure of up to 83.5% be applied to imports of excavators from China to the UK.
The proposed measure would range from 33.03% for sampled producers that took part in the investigation to 83.5% for all other overseas exporters that did not participate. Such a measure could benefit UK excavator producers by up to £3.4 million per year.
TRA Chief Executive Oliver Griffiths said:
“Excavator production is an important component of the UK’s Advanced Manufacturing sector. Our provisional finding is that UK producers are being undercut significantly by dumped imports from China.”
The TRA opened its investigation in response to an application from JCB, a Staffordshire-based multinational business. The TRA estimated that during the period of investigation, UK excavator producers employed around 900 workers and had a turnover of around £500 million.
Around 180,000 tonnes of excavators were sold in the UK during the period of investigation, with the UK industry supplying between 10-25% of this volume. The UK industry’s market share decreased by 11% over the injury period.
The TRA found that Chinese exporters were able to use reduced production costs to price their exports below UK competitors who did not benefit from an artificially low-cost base. It determined that UK prices were undercut by a rate of 23.39%.
The TRA has therefore published its initial findings in a Statement of Essential Facts, proposing that an anti-dumping measure be imposed on imports of excavators from China weighing 11 tonnes or more, but less than 80 tonnes.
Interested parties now have until 16 December 2024 to comment on the anti-dumping SEF and can do so through the TRA’s public file.
Countervailing investigation
In addition to the anti-dumping recommendation, the TRA has also published its initial findings in its countervailing investigation into excavators imported to the UK from China.
During its investigation, the TRA found Chinese excavators have been subsidised and that their importation to the UK has caused injury to the UK’s excavator industry.
As a result, the TRA has made an initial recommendation to impose a countervailing duty on imported Chinese excavators weighing 11 tonnes or more, but less than 80 tonnes. The duty would range from 0% to 2.93% and would be in addition to the anti-dumping duty already proposed.
Interested parties now have until 9 January 2025 to comment on the countervailing SEF and can do so through the TRA’s public file.
Background information
- The periods of investigation for both the anti-dumping and countervailing case were 1 July 2022 – 30 June 2023.
- The TRA found that there is no UK industry for the production of excavators weighing 80 tonnes or above, so has therefore determined that the UK industry would not be injured by these products.
- The TRA is the UK body that investigates whether trade remedy measures are needed to counter unfair trading practices and unforeseen surges of imports.
- Anti-dumping duties allow a country or union to act against goods which are being sold at less than their normal value – this is defined as the price for ‘like goods’ sold in the exporter’s home market.
- Countervailing duties are designed to counteract government subsidies that cause material injury to domestic industries.
Updates to this page
Published 26 November 2024Last updated 12 December 2024 + show all updates
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This news story has been updated to reflect the TRA has also published its initial findings in its countervailing investigation into excavators imported to the UK from China.
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First published.