Commission welcomes progress in approval of the modernised EU’s trade defence rules

Trade defence | Brussels, 23 January 2018

Today, the international trade committee of the European Parliament endorsed the political agreement reached between the Commission, the Council and the European Parliament on 5 December 2017 on the modernisation of the EU’s trade defence instruments.

Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmström said: "Today's resoundingly positive vote means that the EU is one step closer to having the necessary tools to tackle unfair trading practices quickly and effectively. Together with the recently-agreed changes to our anti-dumping methodology, the EU's toolbox of trade defence instruments will be even better suited to deal with global challenges. I now look forward to the speedy adoption of this decision by plenary of the European Parliament. The EU stands for open and rules-based trade, but we must ensure that others do not take advantage of our openness. The EU stands ready to defend its industry and workers from unfair competition."

The changes to the EU's anti-dumping and anti-subsidy regulations will make the EU's trade defence instruments more adapted to the challenges of the global economy: they'll become more effective, transparent and easier to use for companies. In some cases they will also enable the EU to impose higher duties on dumped products. The details of the agreement reached in December are now presented in a dedicated factsheet.

The new rules will enter into force once the European Parliament and the Council conclude the respective ongoing approval procedures.

More information

The political agreement