HCM CITY ?Vietnamese leather and footwear enterprises said they had sufficient evidence to support their defence against the anti-dumping lawsuit currently being waged by the European Commission (EC).
The verdicts, released after a two-month investigation, found eight surveyed enterprises in the country? leather and footwear sector had failed to satisfy EC-set criteria of a market economy.
Five criteria to be recognised as a market economy include business operation costs within a market, international standard accounting, the exchange rate, laws on bankruptcy and property, and the uncontrollability of the former subsidised economic system.
Nguyen Duc Thuan, vice chairman of the Viet Nam Leather and Footwear Association (Lefaso), said the EC lawsuit proved implausible when analysing all the criteria.
The verdict called for a whopping 130 per cent tariff rate on Lefaso? products, the precedent of which would impact some 1 million employees in the industry.
Laura Atlee, lawyer on behalf of the Lefaso members pointed out that it was unreasonable to jump to the conclusion that the firms inspected could not comply with the majority of the criteria concerning business operation costs.
She claimed that EC inspectors did not completely understand Viet Nam? accounting and auditing norms, along with the Land Law and Viet Nam? Law on Foreign Investment.
Regarding the criterion on business operations, Laura rejected the EC argument that Vietnamese exporters did not have the 80 per cent export rate as regulated by Viet Nam? Investment Law to receive subsidy.
She interpreted the EC argument as being out of line with the two decrees issued by the Vietnamese Government on Foreign Investment in Viet Nam.
The first decree No.24/2000/ND-CP stipulates that investors have the right to choose investment projects, investment partners, place, time, market and ratio of share contribution in accordance with the investment law and the decree itself.
Another decree No.27/2003/ND-CP is to provide companies with two levels of incentives. Accordingly, companies either exporting 80 per cent of their products or employing over 500 workers may receive preferential tax treatment.
Concerning the criterion on accounting and auditing norms, the EC argued that such standards applied in Vietnamese enterprises did not follow international norms.
Lefaso, however, described the claim as groundless since the country? norms, in fact, complied with those set by the International Federation of Accountants ?as Viet Nam is an acting member.
The EC is now awaiting feedback from Lefaso member enterprises, whose response to the verdicts would be hard to predict, said a Lefaso official.
