Statistics of customs detentions recorded at the external borders of the EU - 2010

Statistics published on 14 July 2011 by the European Commission show an amazing upward trend in the number of shipments suspected of violating intellectual property rights (IPR). Customs in 2010 registered around 80,000 cases, a figure that has almost doubled since 2009. It refers to more than 103 million products detained at the EU external border. The report stresses that on-line sales caused a spectacular increase of detentions in postal traffic where 60% of the goods detained were medicines. Of the top categories, cigarettes accounted for 34%, followed by office stationary, tobacco products, labels, clothing, and toys.

The link address is: http://ec.europa.eu/taxation_customs/customs/customs_controls/counterfeit_piracy/statistics/index_en.htm