India has imposed an anti-dumping duty on five Chinese goods, including glass mirrors and cellophane transparent film, for five years to guard domestic players from cheap imports from the neighboring country.
These duties were imposed as these products — isopropyl alcohol, sulphur black, cellophane transparent film, thermoplastic polyurethane, and unframed glass mirrors — were exported to India from China at below-normal prices. In five separate notifications, the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs, Department of Revenue, stated that the duty imposed "shall be levied for a period of five years." The government has imposed an anti-dumping duty of USD 82 per tonne and USD 217 per tonne on different Chinese firms for isopropyl alcohol, which has medical and industrial uses. It is also used as an antiseptic for skin and instrumentation, as well as in hand sanitizers.
On imports of sulphur black, whose total imports in 2023-24 were valued at USD 4.3 million, a duty of up to USD 389 per tonne has been imposed. This product is used for dyeing textiles, paper, and leather. Similarly, the import of thermoplastic polyurethane, which has applications in the automotive, medical, and electronics industries, will now attract an anti-dumping duty in the range of USD 0.93 per kg to USD 1.58 per kg. The anti-dumping duty on cellophane transparent film, used as packing material, has been set at USD 1.34 per kg. In 2023-24, the total imports of this product stood at about USD 60 million. On unframed glass mirrors, an anti-dumping duty of USD 234 per tonne has been imposed.
These duties were imposed after recommendations from the commerce ministry’s investigation arm, the Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR). Earlier this month, the DGTR initiated a probe into the alleged dumping of six products, including certain chemicals, cold-rolled electrical steel, and black toner powder cartridges imported from China, following separate complaints from domestic players.
The DGTR is probing the dumping of 1,1,1,2-Tetrafluoroethane (R-134a), acrylonitrile butadiene rubber, certain antioxidants, polytetrafluoroethylene, black toner powder cartridges, and cold-rolled non-oriented electrical steel from China. According to six separate notifications, the applicants have alleged that material injury is being caused to the domestic industry due to the dumped imports of these products originating in or exported from China into India. They have requested the imposition of an anti-dumping duty on these imports to protect them from cheap imports.
If it is established that these imports have caused material injury to domestic players, the DGTR recommends the imposition of an anti-dumping duty. The finance ministry takes the final decision to impose these duties. Anti-dumping probes are conducted by countries to determine whether domestic industries have been harmed by a surge in cheap imports. As a countermeasure, they impose these duties under the multilateral regime of the Geneva-based World Trade Organization (WTO). The duty aims to ensure fair trading practices and create a level playing field for domestic producers vis-à-vis foreign producers and exporters. India has previously imposed anti-dumping duties on several products to tackle cheap imports from various countries, including China. Both India and China are members of the WTO. China is the second-largest trading partner of India, which has repeatedly flagged serious concerns over the widening trade deficit with the neighboring country, which stood at USD 85 billion in 2023-24.
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