Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič, in a written answer on 1 July 2026, defended the EU's anti-dumping duties on Chinese polyamide yarn while outlining a suite of measures to level the playing field for EU hosiery and underwear manufacturers against non-EU e-commerce platforms. The answer, responding to a question from PPE MEP Dariusz Joński, signals the Commission's balancing act between protecting upstream producers and addressing downstream industry complaints about raw material costs and unfair competition from platforms like SHEIN, TEMU, and AliExpress.
Šefčovič confirmed that the Commission weighs the interests of EU producers and users when imposing definitive anti-dumping measures, and that downstream firms can file their own complaints if they face injury from unfairly priced imports. The answer contains both concrete and declarative elements: on e-commerce, the Commission has already abolished the EUR 150 duty exemption and applied a temporary EUR 3 customs duty on low-value items from 1 July 2026, with platforms becoming liable for financial and non-financial customs obligations from 1 July 2028. The Commission is also considering changes to the Market Surveillance Regulation under the European Product Act, and has coordinated customs and market surveillance authorities under a Priority Control Area to target imports from major online platforms, improving border enforcement and data gathering for tools like the Digital Services Act.
The policy orientation is protectionist and enforcement-focused, aiming to shield EU manufacturers from both dumped raw materials and unregulated e-commerce imports. The answer does not announce new numerical targets or deadlines beyond the already-legislated customs reform timeline. Institutional follow-up is expected through the ongoing European Product Act review and joint enforcement actions among member states, which are planned to reinforce cross-border compliance for e-commerce products. The Commission's digital strategy reinforces the principle that all businesses selling into the EU face equivalent obligations and effective controls, with national authorities directed to enforce EU product safety and digital rules strictly.
EU hosiery and underwear producers benefit from anti-dumping duties on polyamide yarn but face higher raw material costs, while the e-commerce measures reduce competitive advantages of non-EU platforms. Chinese polyamide yarn exporters are negatively impacted by the duties. Non-EU e-commerce platforms face increased compliance costs and customs duties. EU consumers may see higher prices for low-value e-commerce goods but gain improved product safety and traceability.