Challenges, opportunities coexist in export to Middle East

Riding the Belt and Road Initiative, Chinese enterprises have rapidly expanded cooperation, trade and investment in the Middle East. The region has also become a key destination for exports including construction materials, consumer goods and electronics. However, as business opportunities flourish, trade issues concerning both sides are also emerging, including antidumping investigations.

Many economies in the Middle East region, such as Gulf Cooperation Council markets, are beefing up in this regard, which leads to higher legal and compliance risks in the region that require more attention from Chinese exporters.

Challenges rising

Unlike the "reciprocal tariffs" imposed by the United States on certain countries or industries, the antidumping investigations by the GCC and Saudi Arabia are highly specific and legally structured. These investigations focus on a particular imported product and assess whether it is being sold at a price lower than its normal value, thereby causing injury to the local industry.

Such investigations are conducted under the World Trade Organization Anti-Dumping Agreement, which allows member countries to impose additional duties on imports when they are found to be "dumped". The original intention of these measures was not to hamper international trade, but to maintain fair competition by addressing unfair pricing practices. Once the final determination is affirmed, the antidumping duty will be effective for five years or more. Such duties are imposed in the form of additional import tariffs.

When it comes to trade between China and the Middle East, as trade grows, so do legal risks. Notably, in a 12-month period between 2023 and 2024, the GCC initiated six antidumping investigations against Chinese products — more than the total number recorded between 2017 and 2021.Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia, driven by its Vision 2030 agenda to diversify the economy beyond oil and strengthen domestic industries, initiated four separate cases against Chinese products under its newly established trade remedy framework.

This surge highlights the region's expanded use of trade defense measures and underscores the growing complexity of compliance risks that exporters must carefully navigate.

Necessary heads-up

In this case, exporters must take timely action when investigations are initiated to avoid risking severe consequences. Under the regulations, antidumping investigations have tight deadlines. Exporters need to submit detailed commercial and financial documents within some 40 days since initiation. Missing a step or deadline can result in the imposition of punitive duties, regardless of whether the company actually engaged in dumping or not. Only companies that respond and cooperate early in the process have the chance to obtain individual treatment and more favorable outcomes. Those that stay silent or react too late are often assigned the highest duties. In such an environment, passive compliance is no longer an option.

In addition, trading companies should also be well prepared for unfamiliar legal and procedural requirements. Unlike the European Union or the US, with long histories of antidumping investigations, Middle East markets do not have many previous cases to reference, with their practices being more innovative.

As a result, many Chinese companies are unfamiliar with the legal and procedural demands of trade remedy cases in the region. Saudi Arabia, for example, still requires formal document legalization, which can cause delays if companies are unprepared.

It's also worth mentioning that local authorities will take manufacturing costs and domestic sales as key gauges when calculating prices, which may leave companies facing inflated dumping margins. Though the GCC and Saudi Arabia both recognize China as a market economy, investigatory authorities retain broad discretion in how they calculate dumping margins. If they deem company data unreliable, they may use constructed cost methods that tend to generate higher margins. This risk is especially high when companies cannot provide clear, verifiable cost and pricing records. A weak accounting system or inconsistent internal data can lead to severe financial consequences.

Deeper thoughts prevail

Trade compliance in the region now requires not only timely reaction, but well-planned strategies. The growing use of trade remedies in the Middle East is not a temporary phenomenon — it is a sign of deeper structural change. For Chinese exporters, this means that compliance must be built into business operations, not treated as a one-off legal response. In addition, early monitoring of trade policy developments, internal preparation for potential investigations, and cooperation with lawyers are now essential components of business strategy.

As the Middle East embraces trade remedy tools as part of its broader industrial policy, Chinese exporters must adapt to a new reality — one where compliance is not a burden, but a strategic advantage. Those who invest early in legal preparedness, clear internal data systems, well-documented financial records and effective cross-border coordination will be best positioned to manage risk — and build long-lasting partnerships in the region.

The writer is a senior partner of Rayyin &Partners, a law firm in Beijing.

The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.