Category: Archive – 2013

Confirms undertaking with Chinese solar panel exporters – The European
Council has this week backed the Commission's proposals to impose definitive
anti-dumping and anti-subsidy measures on imports of solar panels from China.
In parallel, the Commission confirmed its Decision accepting the undertaking
with Chinese solar panel exporters applied since the beginning of August.

The
Council confirmed the level of the duty for those Chinese exporters of solar
panels who cooperated with the investigations. The duties stay unchanged at an
average of 47.7% and will apply for two years as of 6 December 2013.    

The imposition of definitive measures needs to be seen in the context of
the amicable solution reached with China which resulted in the undertaking.
This undertaking, applied as part of the anti-dumping proceedings, is now
confirmed and has been extended to the anti-subsidy proceeding. Hence, the
final anti-dumping and anti-subsidy duty rates will apply only to those exports
from China which do not meet the conditions set out in the undertaking. Those
Chinese exporters that participate in the undertaking are exempt from paying
the anti-dumping and anti-subsidy duties.

Background

The
decisions came after a fifteen-month investigation for the anti-dumping case
and thirteen month investigation for the anti-subsidy case, launched in
September 2012 and November 2012 respectively. During these investigations the
Commission found that Chinese companies were selling solar panels in Europe at
far below their normal market prices and were receiving illegal subsidies,
causing significant harm to EU solar panel producers.

On the investigations

Following
complaints lodged by the industry, the European Commission conducted two
parallel investigations concerning imports of solar panels from China, an
anti-dumping investigation and an anti-subsidy investigation.

On 5
June 2013, the Commission imposed provisional measures in the anti-dumping
case, averaging 47.7%. On 2 August 2013 the Commission accepted an undertaking
offered by the majority of Chinese solar panel exporters.

The
Commission reached its definitive conclusions on the solar panels anti-dumping
and anti-subsidy investigations and, after consulting Member States, made a
proposal to the Council to impose definitive anti-dumping and anti-subsidy
measures for a period of two years.

In
parallel, the decision accepting the undertaking has been confirmed and
updated, among other things to include the anti-subsidy case in the undertaking
and to extend it to some additional companies. Roughly 75% of Chinese solar
panel exports to the EU are now covered by the undertaking and are hence not
subject to any anti-dumping or anti-subsidy duties.

The
Commission took the final decision on the undertaking with a view to it
entering into force on the same day as the anti-dumping and anti-subsidy
measures, on 6 December.

On the decision

According
to this decision, the following duty rates apply to Chinese solar panel
exporters that do not participate in the price undertaking:

–   The average duty for exporters that cooperated in the investigation
is 47.7%, which is the duty rate applicable to the majority of exporters.

–   A duty of 64.9% will be applied to those exporters who did not
cooperate in the European Commission's investigation, which are estimated to
account for less than 20% of exports.

–   The duties are composed of an anti-dumping and an anti-subsidy duty
of the following rates:

Definitive
anti-dumping duties will range from 27.3% to 64.9% for cooperating parties in
the investigation, with a residual anti-dumping duty of 53.4% for
non-cooperating companies in the investigation.

Definitive
anti-subsidy duties will range from 0% (Delsolar) and 3.5% to 11.5% for
cooperating companies in the investigation, with a residual anti-subsidy duty
of 11.5% for non-cooperating companies in the investigation.

The
duties, combined with the undertaking, are expected to stop the downward spiral
of prices on solar panels. Green sustainable development is only possible with
sustainable industries. In this respect, stabilized prices are important not
only for current production, but future investment decisions too. More
information:

http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-13-1190_en.htm

In the yearly
report published by the European Commission DG Enterprise, the 2013 Small
Business Act Fact Sheet for Malta, it is very evident that while SMEs in Malta
have struggled to advance, the public administration up till the first 3 months
of 2013 has been dragging its feet on the very essential implementation of the
SBA which is 'the EUs flagship initiative to support small and medium sized
enterprises (SMEs)'.

The
report emphasizes that 'more than most other Member States, Malta's economy is
driven by micro-firms', which GRTU feels should be the more reason to implement
the SBA. 'SMEs in Malta provide about 80% of jobs in the business economy and
create 71% of the overall value added, which is 14 percentage points more than
the EU average'. The report carries on to describe Malta as belonging 'to the
very small group of MS that saw their SME sector expand over the past five
years in the number of firms and employees'. It says that 'the performance of
Maltese SMEs since 2008 has been extraordinarily robust' however the report
outlines several policy weaknesses where Malta is scoring below the EU average.
Overall, weaknesses to date have not been a fundamental impediment for the
expansion of Malta's SMEs yet these challenges need to be confronted more forcefully
for the sake of Malta's competitiveness.

GRTU
welcomes a more complete profile analysis for Malta which is a result of
Government's efforts to increase Malta's representation in international
statistics. It was very disappointing however 
to learn that additional indicators did not help to improve Malta's
overall performance.

Malta
scores below the EU average in five – entrepreneurship, second chance, state
aid and public procurement, access to finance and skills and innovation – of
the 10 pillars, some of which were already problematic while others have
dropped below the EU ranking only recently. One of the most important pillars –
think small first – for SMEs could not be calculated due to insufficient data
from Malta.

The report
confirms GRTUs long standing arguments that most existing schemes were
inefficient, unfit for SMEs and not aggressive enough in helping SMEs.

The
report also confirms that 'some measures announced in 2011 for implementation
in 2012 still need to be enacted'. These include very important policy measures
on which GRTU has been insisting since the introduction of the SBA, amongst
which; the legal instrument to institutionalize the SME test and ensure that
new acts cannot come into force before 2 months from official publication,
regular customer satisfaction surveys for public institutions providing
services to SMEs and a guarantee scheme by Government for SME loans.

The
Pillars:

1. Entrepreneurship

Malta
continues to trail the EU average. Rates of entrepreneurship and self-employed
and the preference for self-employed and the perceived feasibility of becoming
self-employed remain below the EU average. GRTU feels one of the main reasons
for this is the challenging business environment in Malta. There was however
some marginal improvement and the traditional attitude seems to be changing at
a slow but steady pace. The Malta Enterprise Create scheme is mentioned here
however we do not know how effective this scheme really was.

2. Second Chance

Here
Malta is once again below the EU average. The fact that the time to close a
business in Malta is long combined with a lower level of support for
entrepreneurs seeking a second chance makes an environment which is difficult
for second starters. This has an impact on entrepreneurship.

Worryingly
no policy instruments were introduced to tackle this weakness.

GRTU had
proposed a specific scheme in this regard as part of its 2014 Budget proposals
which however was in no way introduced.

3. Think Small First

The burden
of Government regulation is just off the EU average. Several of the policies
falling under this pillar have been mentioned but not implemented. This is
particularly relevant for the SME test, which is the basis of the SBA , and on
which nothing has been done yet. The report mentioned that the Maltese
Government here indicated the Enterprise Consultative Council as a success but
as users we feel this is an over statement.

4. Responsive administration

Malta is
in line with the EU average. Start-up conditions are said to be relatively
competitive however our major challenges are of reducing the time to start a
business which stands at 7 days while the EU average is 5 days, the cost of
enforcing contracts and the complex licensing system. The Malta Enterprise
Business First is quoted as the main reason for the good conditions however we
feel that Business First could do much more in terms of outreach and reporting.
Its facilities are utilized only by those that come across it so many still set
up business without using Business First which is both lengthier and costlier.
Not enough promotion is done of the support schemes and stakeholder involvement
in both drafting schemes and promoting them is still limited which leads to low
utilization of certain schemes. GRTU agrees with the report that states that
much more needs to be done to advance the idea of an administration that is
truly responsive to business needs.

5. State Aid and Public Procurement

Malta is
just below the EU average and certain data is very worrying. While SMEs in
Malta appear to have a greater chance to participate in public procurement they
face severe difficulties in benefitting from state aid measures. While in Malta
state aid for SMEs is measured as almost non existent in some countries such as
the UK the figure reaches 18%. This is not surprising to GRTU which has been
concerned and complaining about the low amount of state aid going to SMEs for
years. Something is clearly wrong and the administration does not even
acknowledge the problem. Malta is doing quite well on the share of SMEs using
e-procurement services. This might also be because this is the only way that
tendering for public contracts can be done. The absolute  majority of our member from a wide variety of
sectors however complain that the new e-procurement system which Government is
said to have facilitated is still very complex. It requires them to attend a
course to help them in submitting the tender however it is still difficult and
more time consuming, members report that without the course it would be
hopeless.

6. Access to Finance

On
access to finance Malta scores below the EU average. It is reported that
comparatively SMEs are successful in obtaining loans form banks, which we feel
this is because comparatively Malta was not as affected by the crises and
therefore banks maintained their lending trends. Two indicators describing the
share of EU structural fund financing reserved for SMEs show that Malta is far
below the EU average. Malta's 2.8% is shockingly low when compared to countries
like Denmark and Finland where the share is almost ten times as much. Policy
measures undertaken between end 2012 and beginning 2013 have not addressed
these issues. The BStart scheme is mentioned however we highly doubt the use
and effectiveness of this scheme for SMEs.

7. Single market

Malta's
headline score declined from last year as compared with the EU average. The
indicators measuring exports from MS imports into the single market by
Maltese  shows Malta trailing the EU
average by some distance. In exports in the single market Malta's share is only
a quarter of the EU average, one of the lowest figures of all EU Member States.
Efforts to help SMEs export have to become more effective and result oriented.
This includes schemes such as Gateway to Export and the trade missions
organized by Malta Enterprise.

8. Skills and innovation

Here we
are just below the EU average and the report states that 'Malta has much room
for improvement' especially related to the innovative capacity of SMEs. Another
negative indicator was the percentage of businesses that provided training to
employees which was only 16%. Malta is however in line with the EU average when
it comes to percentage of SMEs carrying out business online. Two schemes are
mentioned, the Commercialisation Programme launched in 2013 which augurs well
but it is too early to measure its effectiveness and the Quality + scheme
implemented in 2012 on which we have not as yet heard success stories.

9. Environment

'This is
an area where Malta trails behind the EU average in many respects'. Few SME
offer green products or services however the situation is better when it comes
to investments in resource efficiency and the number of SMEs that have
benefited from public support for production of green products. More effort is
required in policy measures aimed to address this gap.

10. Internationalisation

Malta is
comfortably within the EU average. A significant gap is once again recorded for
exports, this time outside the EU, however Malta performs well with regards to
the enabling conditions of costs and time for trade. While it can be cheaper
and faster to trade from Malta, there is also more paper work with the
authorities requiring on average two more documents from traders than the EU
standard. To improve overall export performance the report suggests investing
in physical infrastructure and awareness-raising among businesses. Once again
GRTU emphasizes that trade missions and schemes targeted at exports should be
result oriented. One can easily draw the conclusion that the picture is not a
positive one.

We are
concerned that the absolute majority of issues have not been addressed in the
slightest in this year's Budget. GRTU hopes that many of the issues that it had
been flagging for so long will be addressed especially now that they are backed
by the Commission. It is evident that much greater effort is needed from the
side of the administration to really help 
the most important chunk of businesses, SMEs. Policies have to be
effective and result oriented and carried out in close cooperation with SME
representatives, that know the needs of SMEs best.

The euro area
(EA17) seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate was 12.1% in October 2013, down
from 12.2% in September. The EU28 unemployment rate was 10.9%, stable compared
with September. In both zones, rates have risen compared with October 2012,
when they were 11.7% and 10.7% respectively.

These figures are published by
Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union. In October 2013, 26.654
million men and women were unemployed in the EU28, of whom 19.298 million were
in the euro area. Compared with September 2013, the number of persons
unemployed decreased by 75 000 in the EU28 and by 61 000 in the euro area.
Compared with October 2012, unemployment rose by 512 000 in the EU28 and by 615
000 in the euro area.

Over 10 years
after the introduction of euro banknotes and coins, the Eurosystem – the
European Central Bank (ECB) and the national central banks (NCBs) of the euro
area – will unveil a new Europa series €10 banknote on 13 January 2014 and
issue the note later in the year.

The European
Parliament has voted in favour of the EU's Multiannual Financial Framework
(MFF) for the years 2014 to 2020. Consent by the Parliament on 19 November
clears the way for final approval of the budget by the Council in the coming
weeks.

The European
Commission has proposed new rules on the protection of undisclosed know-how and
business information (trade secrets) against their unlawful acquisition, use
and disclosure. The draft directive introduces a common definition of trade
secrets, as well as means through which victims of trade secret
misappropriation can obtain redress.

Commissioner
for Internal Market and Services Michel Barnier said: "Cybercrime and
industrial espionage are unfortunately part of the reality that businesses in
Europe face every day. We have to make sure our laws move with the times and
that the strategic assets of our companies are adequately protected against
theft and misuse… "

Vice-President
Antonio Tajani added: "Protecting trade secrets is particularly important
for the EU's smaller, less established firms. They employ trade secrecy more
intensively than larger companies – in part because of the cost of patenting
and protection against infringement. …".

The JASMINE
Helpdesk is part of the JASMINE Initiative (Joint Action to Support
Micro-finance Institution in Europe) funded by the European Commission, the
European Investment Bank and the European Investment Fund.

This
helpdesk is an online tool allowing users to lodge detailed information
requests about EU funding possibilities, market updates, capacity building,
European microfinance rules and regulations, technical assistance, good
practices in microcredit lending, client protection, risk management, strategic
planning and any other microfinance-related query.

This
service is completely free of charge. Questions can be filed in English,
French, German, Italian, Romanian and Spanish. They will be answered within 5
working days by a team of microfinance experts.

Follow
the link below to the JASMINE HELPDESK form to enter your question:

http://ec.europa.eu/yourvoice/ipm/forms/dispatch?form=jasminhelp&lang=en

In November
2013, the Business Climate Indicator (BCI) for the euro area rose for the
seventh successive month, turning positive for the first time since March 2012.
It increased by 0.26 points to +0.18. The assessments of past production, the
level of overall order books and export order books improved sharply. Also
production expectations increased, though to a lesser degree, while managers'
assessment of the stocks of finished products remained broadly unchanged.

The European
Commission on 25 November moved to clamp down on companies in the European
Union that avoid paying corporate taxes by exploiting differences between
member states' tax regimes.

The
proposal will close loopholes in existing EU rules that are supposed to ensure
that transfers between companies that are part of a single corporate group but
based in different EU member states are not taxed twice.

Some
companies have used the rules, which date back to 1990 and were last amended in
2003 – together with aggressive tax planning – to avoid paying tax altogether.
One common practice involves setting up a ‘letter-box' company in a member
state with a more favourable tax regime.

Another
involves dressing up dividend payments from a subsidiary to a parent company as
loan repayments, which in several member states are not taxed.

The
Commission proposal would allow tax authorities to ignore such "artificial
arrangements" and require them to ensure that so-called "hybrid loan"
arrangements are taxed in either the subsidiary or the parent company's home
member state.

Increased
tax revenues for member states would be "in the magnitude of billions of
euros", said Algirdas Šemeta, the European commissioner for taxation, customs,
statistics, audit and anti-fraud. Companies such as Google, Amazon, Starbucks,
and Apple have courted controversy this year amid allegations that they pay too
little in taxes.

The
Commission will need to win over all member states to stand a chance of being
adopted, since each one holds a veto over legislation affecting such tax.