Ue, Cina, gruppi, liberalizzazioni, infrastrutture, macchinari; armamenti
La UE cerca di forzare l’ingresso nelle commesse pubbliche a Pechino
● I gruppi europei legati delle infrastrutture e macchinari pesanti, come la tedesca Siemens AG, la francese Alstom SA, EADS (Difesa e Spazio) casa madre di Airbus sono interessati alla forte crescita dell’economia e della spesa statale cinesi.
o Il governo cinese ha di recente stanziato uno stimolo di $586 MD per i gruppi delle infrastrutture.
– Il commissario UE per il commercio, il belga Karel De Gucht, intende utilizzare il peso UE, maggior blocco economico mondiale, per costringere a Cina (con una legislazione europea ad hoc – nel 2011 – che la ricatta “moderatamente e settorialmente”) a concedere maggiore accesso ai gruppi esteri alle commesse pubbliche, per le quali il governo dà la preferenza ai gruppi cinesi rispetto a quelli esteri.
o Si tratterebbe di applicare la regola anti-dumping anche ai contratti pubblici, per il quale non era finora applicata.
o Se, ad es., la Cina impedisce ad un gruppo francese di costruire un’autostrada a Pechino, sarà impedito ai gruppi cinesi di partecipare a pubbliche offerte simili in Francia.
o De Gucht vuole estendere le tradizionali misure di difesa commerciale, come le tariffe anti-dumping; esiste una formula che ogni paese può usare per determinare se un altro paese sta immettendo le proprie merci con il “dumping”, nel qual caso può imporre tariffe doganali su queste merci.
La legislazione suddetta completerebbe l’Accordo sulle commesse statali (Government Procurement Agreement – GPA) del 1996, che garantisce la non discriminazione. Ma la Cina non fa parte del GPA.
BRUSSELS—The European Union’s top trade official said he would propose legislation in 2011 to try to make China give foreign companies greater access to bidding for public contracts.
China’s exceptional growth and government spending have made it a juicy target for European infrastructure and heavy machinery companies such as Germany’s Siemens AG; France’s Alstom SA; and European Aeronautic Defence & Space Co., the parent of aircraft maker Airbus.
These and other companies complain that China favors its domestic companies over foreign competition when awarding public contracts.
– EU Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht has adopted the matter as one of his signature issues. In a speech introducing his formal trade strategy Tuesday, Mr. De Gucht said the EU would use its leverage as the world’s largest economic bloc to "retaliate" against countries with closed public-contracts markets.
– He said EU retaliation would be "moderate" and "sectoral"—trade jargon for focusing on specific industrial sectors. "The rules we set at home influence our competitiveness abroad," he said.
– In other words, if China unfairly blocks a French firm from building a highway in Beijing, Chinese companies could be blocked from bidding on similar tenders in France.
– Mr. De Gucht’s strategy would expand the arsenal of traditional trade defense measures such as antidumping tariffs.
– Global trade in goods is regulated by rules built up since World War II. Countries are allowed to apply a formula to determine whether another country is dumping goods on its market. If the formula determines that is the case, the importing country is entitled to impose tariffs on the product being dumped.
– There is no equivalent system for public contracts. Mr. De Gucht said he would propose legislation next year via the normal EU rule-making process. It would have to be approved by the EU’s 27 members and the European Parliament. EU trade officials concede they will face some political hurdles in pushing for a policy likely to draw actions of protectionism.
– The legislation would complement the 1996 Government Procurement Agreement, which guarantees non-discrimination. However, China isn’t a member, and EU officials say the GPA lacks teeth.
– Trade lawyers say the EU has legal room to maneuver on this. "He might be on to something," says Richard Weiner, a trade lawyer for Sidley Austin LLP.
Mr. De Gucht, the 56-year-old Belgian known for his frank talk, has shown a different style than his predecessors, such as consensus-loving Peter Mandelson, who traveled frequently to China seeking to forge an amicable, diplomatic bond.
– By contrast, Mr. De Gucht argues Europe is powerful enough to take on China without compromise. When asked why China would listen to the EU during trade talks, he said: "Because Europe is bigger than China….The biggest of the two economies is still Europe."
Taking a tough line on contracts has risks for Europe. "It’s sensible to present the EU as a tough negotiator," says Iain MacVay, a trade lawyer for Steptoe & Johnson LLP. "But it’s self-defeating if you start closing down access to your market" for more competitive tenders.
Chinese officials say they don’t discriminate. In a recent speech, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said, "In government procurement, China gives equal treatment to all products produced in China by foreign-invested enterprises and Chinese-invested enterprises alike."
Beijing’s most recent stimulus package was $586 billion—a gold mine for infrastructure firms.
Mr. De Gucht also called for the Doha Round of global talks to be finished by the end of 2011, open foreign investment flows, and enforcement of intellectual property rights.