BikeBiz Bicycle and cycling retail news
Dinh Thi My Loan, director of the Competition Management Department, stressed that the Vietnamese government has no policies protecting bicycle manufacturers, reports the Vietnamese News Agency.
The European Bicycle Manufacturers’ Association (EBMA), based in Paris, filed a dumping complaint to the European Commission which is now investigating the complaint.
Loan said that of the nine businesses fingered by EBMA, three do not export to the EU and six are Taiwanese-owned, not Vietnamese-owned.
To prove dumping, EBMA uses bicycle prices from Mexican companies to track against those from the Vietnamese producers. The Competition Management Department belives this is not tracking like-with-like.
ETRA – the Association of European Two-Wheel Vehicle Retailers – is opposed to EBMA’s complaint against Vietnam. Unlike bikes from China, which are usually sold in non-IBD outlets, Vietnam-made bikes are sold in bike shops and any duties would have a detrimental effect on sales, believes ETRA.
Vietnam exported 1.3 million bicycles to the EU in 2003. Exports are estimated at 1.5 million units this year.
Most of the Vietnam-made bikes are sold in the UK, with other EU importers being Germany, Belgium and Denmark. The average unit value of the imported bikes is €77.53.
The Vietnamese Bicycle and Motorcycle Association (VBMA) has told the EC a bicycle is selling for around €25.00 in Vietnam.
