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In brief

The Brazilian Secretariat of Foreign Trade (“SECEX“) opened, on 22 June 2023, a new investigation to assess whether the Chinese government granted actionable subsidies to its national producers who exported fiber-optic cables (NCM 8544.70.10) to Brazil.

The investigation may result in the imposition of countervailing measures and the consequent increase in the cost of Brazilian imports of fiber-optic cables for a period of five years. In parallel, there is another ongoing investigation into the alleged practice of dumping by Chinese manufacturers/exporters of the same product, which may result in the imposition of antidumping duties, further raising the cost of Brazilian importers.

Fiber-optic cables are used in telecommunications networks for data, sound and image transmission, long distance communication networks, metropolitan networks, among others.

The full official notice of initiation (in Portuguese) is available here.


Importance of interested parties’ participation

The active participation of importers, exporters and any other interested parties in the investigation may be decisive to ensure a more favorable final determination to the concerned interested party. Interested parties may apply to be heard in the proceedings until 12 July 2023.

Furthermore, interested parties may request the initiation of a public interest investigation be conducted in parallel to the subsidies and countervailing measures investigation. Within the scope of this related investigation, the authority will analyze, based on economic information and studies submitted by the parties, whether the impact of the imposition of the countervailing measure on economic agents as a whole is potentially more harmful compared to the positive effects of the measure.

More details

Please see in the chart below further information about the investigation:

LOGO_TrenchRossiWatanabe_Brazil

Trench Rossi Watanabe and Baker McKenzie have executed a strategic cooperation agreement for consulting on foreign law.

Author

Paulo Casagrande joined the Firm in early 2020 as the partner in charge of the Antitrust & Competition group. Mr. Casagrande has 20 years of professional experience, both in the private and the public sectors.

At the federal government, he was the first ever Head of the Bid Rigging Unit at the Secretariat of Economic Law of the Brazilian Ministry of Justice (SDE), the agency then in charge of investigating cartels before the reorganization of the Brazilian Competition Defense System in 2012. During his stint at the government, he conducted several investigations together with other enforcement agencies, and also represented the Secretariat at the meetings of the Competition Committee of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in Paris (France).

While in the private bar, Paulo was a partner at leading international and Brazilian Law firms, and has a deep knowledge of several industries and a broad business vision. He has been especially active in the representation of clients before CADE (the Brazilian antitrust agency) in complex merger reviews and investigations of alleged anticompetitive practices. Paulo also accumulates extensive experience in assisting infrastructure and tech companies active in dynamic digital markets.

*Trench Rossi Watanabe and Baker McKenzie have executed a strategic cooperation agreement for consulting on foreign law.

Author

Francisco Niclós Negrão joined the firm in 2023, as co-head of our Antitrust and International Trade Practice. Negrão has over 20 years of experience in complex cases in both areas, being recognized for offering legal solutions to complex problems in addition to a sophisticated economic analysis, given his double educational background.

Negrão’s experience in both practices during two decades allows him to have a deep knowledge of the functioning of various markets, having had stellar results for his clients in antidumping investigations, subsidies/countervailing measures, public interest analyses, tariff changes, commercial disputes, among others.  In addition, in antitrust, Negrão has a solid background in complex merger reviews, investigations regarding vertical and horizontal practices, and a renowned track record in the designing and implementation of broad and deep competition compliance programs.  He also has experience in the public sector, as a public servant in the Brazilian National Treasury.

Francisco Niclós Negrão has been recognized for International Trade and Antitrust by the main legal rankings, such as Chambers, The Legal 500, Latin Lawer 250, Who’s Who Legal, Leaders League, Best Lawyers, and Análise Advocacia, among others.

In international Trade, according to clients mentioned by The Legal 500: “Francisco Niclós Negrão is currently one of the best lawyers, if not the best, in the area of international trade in the country. He has an incredible depth in his analysis and, at the same time, a great power of synthesis highly valued by those who are on the side of the company and need to pass the information to management in a clear and direct way. In addition, he is highly respected by the authorities for his knowledge. His fluency in English and Spanish, in addition to Portuguese, is a great asset, especially for companies with a presence in several countries.” (The Legal 500, 2022)

In antitrust, according to Chambers and Partners: “Francisco Negrão is commended by market sources for his solid expertise in competition law, being further recognised for his knowledge about trade law.” A client asserts: “He is a very skilled lawyer, understands a lot of economic regulation and goes beyond legal knowledge about the topic at hand,” and adds: “He has this additional economic expertise which part complements the work and adds a lot of value.” (Chambers and Partners, 2022)

In addition to his law degree from the University Center of Brasilia (UniCEUB), also holds Bachelor and Master degrees in Economics and International Economics and Finance from Brandeis University (USA), with a period at Università Bocconi (Italy). Negrão has also compliance training from Society for Corporate Compliance and Ethics – SCCE.

Francisco Niclós Negrão is the President for the Commission of International Trade from the Attorneys Institute of São Paulo (IASP) and has been, for two terms, Director of International Trade in the Brazilian Institute for Antitrust, Consumer Law and International Trade (IBRAC).  He is routinely a speaker in seminars involving International trade and antitrust.

*Trench Rossi Watanabe and Baker McKenzie have executed a strategic cooperation agreement for consulting on foreign law.”

Author

Andrea Da Cunha Cruz joined the Firm in 2022. She integrates the Antitrust practice group, with focus on providing legal assistance regarding a variety of matter concerning competition law and international trade. Andrea has a wide breadth of experience in the representation of clients before the Brazilian Competition Authority (the Administrative Council for Economic Defense or CADE) in administrative proceedings regarding both cartel investigations and unilateral anticompetitive practices. She also has a wide-ranging track record of commercial transactions filed with CADE. Her practice further includes preventive counselling concerning antitrust risks involved in commercial practices and contracts; handling internal investigations; and structuring and implementing antitrust compliance programs. As to international trade, she mainly advises representatives of the national industry and Brazilian importers in antidumping and subsidy investigations.
*Trench Rossi Watanabe and Baker McKenzie have executed a strategic cooperation agreement for consulting on foreign law.”

Author

Déborah de Sousa e Castro Melo joined the Firm in 2023, When she became a senior lawyer. She integrates the Competition and international trade practice group, with focus on international trade. Déborah Melo has a wide breadth of experience in trade remedies investigations, in addition to other international trade related themes, as well as competition matters.
*Trench Rossi Watanabe and Baker McKenzie have executed a strategic cooperation agreement for consulting on foreign law.”