By . Sean Poulter, Consumer Affairs Editor . PUBLISHED: . 20:39 EST, 15 November 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 08:56 EST, 16 November 2012 . High street stores have slammed Brussels over decision to impose a 'Crockery Tax' on cheap cups, plates and bowls imported from China. A new duty will come into force within 24 hours and add between 17.6per cent and 58.8per cent to the wholesale dockside price of the cheap imports. This could feed through to a 20 per cent increase in the price of a basic set of dinner plates, side plates and bowls in the shops. Some 80 per cent of all British and European imports of crockery come from China, which benefits from low wages and production costs. The tax is expected to add £230million to importers' costs . The British Retail Consortium(BRC) warned that the increase will inevitably drive up shop prices, particularly for value crockery which appeals to households on a tight budget. The move by the European Commission is the latest in a number of trade measures designed to protect manufacturers in Europe against competition from cheap Chinese imports. Other targets have included shoes, bicycles, candles and even ironing boards. However, the net effect is to add to the cost of living for families hit by big increases in the cost of essentials from heat and light to food and petrol. It will also further drive up inflation in the UK, which is already rising more quickly than the incomes of many households. Anger at the move has been exacerbated because the Commission has given importers just 24 hours' notice of the new taxes. The duties are the result of a nine-month investigation by the Commission into claims by an anonymous European manufacturer that Chinese producers are selling these into the EU at artificially low prices. The EU market for ceramic tableware and kitchenware is worth £1.2billion with around half of that made up of products imported from China. It is estimated that the duties will add £230million to importers' costs which will be passed on to customers. The new is supposed to protect EU producers but will negatively impact high street retailers . Director general of the BRC, Stephen Robertson, said: 'This is the wrong decision badly handled. The principle here is that free trade is good for the customer. 'Let's be clear – these new duties will feed through to higher prices in stores. And, because China mainly supplies the value end of the market, they will deny less well-off customers access to affordable crockery.' He added: 'The irony is; making hard-pressed customers pay more will do nothing to support European producers who don't have the capacity to produce enough at low enough prices. 'Our members tell us that the only alternative for them, if they're forced to look elsewhere, will be to source from other low-cost Asian countries. 'What is particularly galling is that the European Commission – unelected Eurocrats – pressed ahead with this tax despite the majority of member states, including the UK, voting against. 'The way officials are treating businesses engaged in nearly three quarter of a billion euros of trade is utterly unacceptable. 'How can companies be expected to plan millions of pounds worth of buying with no certainty about whether their costs will rocket overnight?' The British Ceramics Confederation, which speaks for UK manufacturers, said the decision by the European Commission could help boost UK production and jobs. Its chief executive, Dr Laura Cohen, said: 'A lot of manufacturing was outsourced to China about eight to ten years ago. The ceramic manufacturing industry in this country declined, but that has stabilised and the industry has fought back in recent years.' She gave the example of the famous Portmerion brand, which has brought the manufacture of some of its ranges back to Britain from China. 'This decision to apply duty on Chinese imports may well result in more manufacturing coming back to the UK,' she said.
The British Retail Consortium warned that the move will drive up shop prices .
The EU market for ceramic tableware and kitchenware is worth £1.2billion .
It is estimated that the duties will add £230million to importers' costs .
By . Sean Poulter, Consumer Affairs Editor . PUBLISHED: . 20:39 EST, 15 November 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 08:56 EST, 16 November 2012 . High street stores have slammed Brussels over decision to impose a 'Crockery Tax' on cheap cups, plates and bowls imported from China. A new duty will come into force within 24 hours and add between 17.6per cent and 58.8per cent to the wholesale dockside price of the cheap imports. This could feed through to a 20 per cent increase in the price of a basic set of dinner plates, side plates and bowls in the shops. Some 80 per cent of all British and European imports of crockery come from China, which benefits from low wages and production costs. The tax is expected to add £230million to importers' costs . The British Retail Consortium(BRC) warned that the increase will inevitably drive up shop prices, particularly for value crockery which appeals to households on a tight budget. The move by the European Commission is the latest in a number of trade measures designed to protect manufacturers in Europe against competition from cheap Chinese imports. Other targets have included shoes, bicycles, candles and even ironing boards. However, the net effect is to add to the cost of living for families hit by big increases in the cost of essentials from heat and light to food and petrol. It will also further drive up inflation in the UK, which is already rising more quickly than the incomes of many households. Anger at the move has been exacerbated because the Commission has given importers just 24 hours' notice of the new taxes. The duties are the result of a nine-month investigation by the Commission into claims by an anonymous European manufacturer that Chinese producers are selling these into the EU at artificially low prices. The EU market for ceramic tableware and kitchenware is worth £1.2billion with around half of that made up of products imported from China. It is estimated that the duties will add £230million to importers' costs which will be passed on to customers. The new is supposed to protect EU producers but will negatively impact high street retailers . Director general of the BRC, Stephen Robertson, said: 'This is the wrong decision badly handled. The principle here is that free trade is good for the customer. 'Let's be clear – these new duties will feed through to higher prices in stores. And, because China mainly supplies the value end of the market, they will deny less well-off customers access to affordable crockery.' He added: 'The irony is; making hard-pressed customers pay more will do nothing to support European producers who don't have the capacity to produce enough at low enough prices. 'Our members tell us that the only alternative for them, if they're forced to look elsewhere, will be to source from other low-cost Asian countries. 'What is particularly galling is that the European Commission – unelected Eurocrats – pressed ahead with this tax despite the majority of member states, including the UK, voting against. 'The way officials are treating businesses engaged in nearly three quarter of a billion euros of trade is utterly unacceptable. 'How can companies be expected to plan millions of pounds worth of buying with no certainty about whether their costs will rocket overnight?' The British Ceramics Confederation, which speaks for UK manufacturers, said the decision by the European Commission could help boost UK production and jobs. Its chief executive, Dr Laura Cohen, said: 'A lot of manufacturing was outsourced to China about eight to ten years ago. The ceramic manufacturing industry in this country declined, but that has stabilised and the industry has fought back in recent years.' She gave the example of the famous Portmerion brand, which has brought the manufacture of some of its ranges back to Britain from China. 'This decision to apply duty on Chinese imports may well result in more manufacturing coming back to the UK,' she said.
£230million to importers' costs . The British will inevitably drive up shop prices, EU market for ceramic tableware and kitchenware estimated that the duties will add £230million to