More than 150 Chinese shoemakers have formed an alliance against the European
Union's anti-dumping duties and jointly raised 3 million yuan (US$375,000).
The European Commission announced last week that it would impose anti-dumping
duties on leather shoes from China and Vietnam, despite only three countries
voting in favor of the duties, 10 against and 11 abstaining.
The duties on Chinese shoes will start at 4 percent from Friday and rise to
19.4 percent in the following six months.
However, children's shoes and high-tech sports shoes will be excluded from
the tariffs.
China has rejected the duties as unjustified and a violation of free trade.
Though the duties will be tentative, it is very possible that they may last
for five years, Wu Zhenchang, president of Panyu Chuangxin Shoes Group in south
China's Guangdong Province, told Xinhua.
Wu said in today's highly globalized international market, the 19.4 percent
anti-dumping duties will not only drag China's shoemakers down but also drive
customers to the nation's competitors.
"The high duties will snatch the order forms of the European importers from
China's shoemakers and thrust them into the hands of those in Thailand and
Malaysia and in the long term, Eastern European and Indian shoemakers will also
become strong rivals," Wu said.
Fighting for legal interests of their own, more than 150 shoemakers in China
formed the alliance and selected 15 member companies to form an executive
committee to fight further against the anti-dumping move.
The alliance said it disagrees with the EC's decision to treat Chinese
shoemakers as state-nurtured companies and not as freely competing market
players, and the conclusion that the EU's footwear industry has suffered losses
due to imports of Chinese footwear.