The hearing is an integral part of the procedure of the SETC's final decision on whether these imports have severely damaged or posed threats of severe damage to domestic industries.

The SETC launched an anti-dumping investigation against South Korea, Japan, the United States and Finland on February 6. Its preliminary decision found that imports have risen rapidly and consequently caused severe damage to domestic industries.

The Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Co-operation (MOFTEC), based on the SETC's decision and its own investigations, on November 26 announced that it would levy temporary anti-dumping taxes of 5.58 per cent to 71.02 per cent on imports of coated art paper from the three countries concerned.

It also announced in its preliminary judgment its intention to end investigations into imports from Finland because they made up less than 1.5 per cent of China's total coated art paper imports during the investigated period of 2001.

China launched the probe in response to applications by four local paper manufacturers, Gold East Paper Co Ltd, Shandong Quanlin Paper Co Ltd, Jiangnan Paper Mill and Wanhao Paper Group Co Ltd.

The four companies accounted for 65.6 and 56.6 per cent of the country's total output of coated art paper in 2000 and 2001, according to SETC statistics.

The SETC and the MOFTEC are expected to give their final judgment on August 6, 2003.

Since China brought out its rules on anti-dumping and anti-subsidy in 1997, China has launched 22 anti-dumping cases and one safeguard measure case.

Those cases mainly involved iron and steel, chemicals and light industry. Judgments favouring domestic industries have saved economic losses of about 20 billion yuan (US$2.4 billion), said trade experts.

SETC statistics show China instigated 10 cases last year, with annual sales of products involved stood at 59.2 billion yuan (US$7.15 billion).

Trade experts hail these investigations as important steps in helping Chinese business learn to make use of related rules and protect their benefits in the new trade environment following China's entry into the World Trade Organization in 2001.

Through favorable judgments in these anti-dumping cases, domestic industry has been able to recover from the damage inflicted by soaring imports and grow, said a recent editorial in People's Daily.

The majority of these industries have been able to upgrade their technology and improve commodities structure after anti-dumping measures were adopted.

Anti-dumping investigations and resulting measures play an important role in protecting fair trade, increasing employment, stabilizing the society and safeguarding China's industrial and economic security, said the editorial.

These investigations also place restraint on the abuse of anti-dumping measures and unfair discrimination against Chinese products on the international market, it said.

Soon after China's WTO entry, the Chinese Government revised and issued laws and regulations on anti-dumping, anti-subsidy and safeguard measures.

For their part the SETC, industry associations, provincial and municipal trade and economic commissions and firms have begun establishing pre-warning mechanisms in major industries, such as the automotive, iron and steel and chemical fertilizers.

(China Daily February 11, 2003)