China "Dissatisfied" With EU's Duty Imposition on Chinese Steel Pipes

China was "dissatisfied" with the European Union (EU)'s final ruling of imposing anti-dumping tariffs on Chinese seamless steel pipes, the Ministry of Commerce (MOC) said Tuesday.

The five-year duties, ranging from 17.7 percent to 39.2 percent, was imposed on the accusation that the Chinese imports might cause material injury or threat, according to the EU.

China has reiterated repeatedly that the threat of material injury was strictly defined by the World Trade Organization (WTO) rules and was rarely cited as a reason for anti-dumping ruling practice as the WTO members were "highly prudent" in dealing with such cases, said an official with the MOC.

The Chinese authority has argued that the imposition of anti-dumping duties should be based on findings of material injury or threat, rather than accusation and speculation based on the WTO rules.

Also, anti-dumping complaint must include accurate and adequate evidence of dumping, injury and a causal link between the two elements.

The MOC official said a lot of facts and figures had proved that the Chinese steel pipe exports to EU were decided by market conditions, and had not affected the EU steel makers.

It was "regret" that EU made the decision regardless those facts and figures, he said.

MOC official said the EU failed to honor its commitment of opposing protectionism and the Chinese enterprises would resolutely safeguard their interests.