Press Release: Customs: Commission publishes 2006 Customs seizures of counterfeit goods

Statistics published by the European Commission in May 2007 show a significant increase in the amount of counterfeit and pirated articles seized at the EU's external borders in 2006. Customs officials seized more than 250 million of such articles in 2006 compared with 75 million in 2005 and 100 million in 2004. Medicines, cigarettes and other goods that can seriously damage the health of consumers continue to be faked in large quantities. Changes in the routes used by criminals to trade in fake goods, the use of the internet and the transport of small quantities by air or postal traffic make customs job even more challenging. However, customs' reply has never been as high as in 2006 with more than 36,000 seizures, an increase of around 40% compared with 2005.

European Commission: DG Communication: MEMO/07/214 http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=MEMO/07/214&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en

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