Following the primary decision on October 7 of the European Commission (EC) in its antidumping investigation regarding hot rolled steel plate and common medium plate imports from China imposing an six month of provisional anti-dumping measures, China's Ministry of Commerce (MOC) has stated that China’s steel products were less than 5 percent in EU’s market share, which would not exert negative impact towards EU’s steel industry. The EU frequently initiated AD investigations and even adopted the “surrogate country” system against China’s steel imports in recent days, which severely damaged the interests of Chinese enterprises.
The MOC pointed out that G20 members reached a consensus at the 2016 G20 Summit in Hangzhou to firmly oppose trade protectionism, while the EU’s practice of trade protectionism is completely in opposition to the G20 wishes to push forward trade liberalization. The MOC urged that the EU should adhere closely to the World Trade Organization (WTO) rules and make common efforts to cope with the issue of excess capacity amid sluggish economic growth rather than taking unreasonable actions and practicing trade protectionism.