European Union trade chief Peter Mandelson has been urged to take into account a wider range of interests when considering anti-dumping cases but big changes to the rules are unlikely, a senior trade official said.

EU governments and business want to hear how Mandelson will propose overhauling the bloc's so-called trade defense instruments that have become politically sensitive given the emergence of China and other new export powers.

Mandelson has asked whether the rules should be updated to reflect the way that many European companies now rely on production in countries such as China to remain competitive.

But his review raised concerns among European countries with manufacturers suffering from globalization who feel Mandelson already leans too much to the side of EU importers.

Peter Balas, the Commission's deputy director-general of trade, said consultations this year with EU governments, business, unions and other stakeholders showed support for taking a wider range of interests into account when the Commission decides on anti-dumping cases.

There was support for a "more comprehensive definition" of EU industry, he told a trade conference.

But Balas also said big changes to the rules were unlikely, given the need to get support for the proposals from a majority of the bloc's 27 member states.

"I don't think there will be major changes," he said, adding the review could lead to a "streamlining" of the current system.

Other proposals which could be introduced in Mandelson's reform included cracking down on fraudulent trade practices and making the Commission's procedure for handling trade defense cases more transparent, Balas said.

European companies and trade lawyers have long complained that they are kept in the dark about key stages of anti-dumping cases, giving the Commission room for discretion and raising concerns about politically motivated decisions.

Mandelson's proposals were originally due to be announced in July but are now only due to be published in November. (Reuters)