Lexology reported that on 4 July 2018, the Interdepartmental Commission on International Trade (the ICIT) announced the initiation of two anti-dumping investigations into imports of (i) certain steel products and (ii) cement. The products being looked at by the investigations include carbon and certain alloy steel wire rods originating from Belarus and Moldova, and cement originating from Russia, Belarus and Moldova.

Both investigations are the latest in a series of Ukraine's probes into and measures against Russian and Belarus exports, but this is the first time when Ukraine called products from Moldova into question.

The investigations should be concluded by 4 July next year (in special circumstances can be extended until 4 January 2020), but may affect imports already starting from the beginning of September, 2018 when provisional anti-dumping duties can be introduced.

The ICIT will look into industries damages from January 2013 until September 2017 (for carbon and alloy steel wire rods) and from January 2015 until December 2017 (for cement), and where it finds that dumped imports caused injury to the domestic industries, may impose definitive anti-dumping duties on those for the next five years.

Interested parties can participate in the investigations only subject to their registration by the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade of Ukraine, the deadline for registration is 3 August 2018.