The European Commission is preparing to investigate imports of certain construction materials from several Western Balkan countries over suspicions that Chinese manufacturers are using the region to circumvent European Union anti-dumping and anti-subsidy duties, according to Euronews, citing sources familiar with the matter.
The planned investigation is expected to focus on open mesh textile products used in external thermal insulation systems and other construction applications.
The move comes as Brussels steps up efforts to address the growing influx of low-cost Chinese imports, which contribute to the EU’s trade deficit with China—estimated at approximately €1 billion per day.
The European Commission launched trade negotiations with Beijing in June in an effort to rebalance economic relations, with tangible progress expected by October, when European Commissioner for Trade Maroš Šefčovič is scheduled to visit China.
However, the Commission has warned that it is prepared to deploy trade defense instruments whenever necessary to counter what it considers unfair trade practices, including attempts to bypass existing EU tariffs.
According to Euronews, the textile mesh products under scrutiny are frequently manufactured using Chinese fiberglass, which the European Commission has previously determined is being exported at dumped prices, harming European producers.
As a result, the EU has imposed anti-dumping and countervailing duties on these products for several years, including imports from Egypt manufactured by Chinese-owned companies.
Western Balkans under scrutiny
European authorities now suspect that Chinese manufacturers may be avoiding those duties by supplying fiberglass to producers in several Western Balkan countries, where the material is processed into finished products before being exported to the European Union.
If confirmed, such practices could constitute circumvention of EU trade defense measures.
Industry association Glass Fibre Europe estimates that approximately one million tonnes of molten glass are produced annually across factories in eight EU member states, including Germany, France, and Italy.
By comparison, China’s fiberglass production capacity exceeds the EU’s annual market demand by more than 100 percent, raising concerns among European manufacturers about continued market distortion if additional safeguards are not introduced.
Brussels weighs stronger trade defenses
The potential investigation comes amid growing concerns over alleged unfair Chinese trade practices across multiple industrial sectors and criticism that EU investigations have often progressed too slowly.
In mid-June, EU member states granted the European Commission a mandate to review and modernize the bloc’s trade defense instruments.
According to Euronews, Brussels is also evaluating additional protective measures—including new tariffs and import quotas—to shield Europe’s chemical and manufacturing industries from intensifying competition from Chinese imports.
The investigation, if formally launched, would mark another step in the EU’s broader strategy to strengthen enforcement of its trade rules while protecting European industries from what it considers unfair foreign competition.
