India Imposes Five-Year Anti-Dumping Duty On Some Chinese Products

India has imposed anti-dumping duty on five Chinese goods, including glass mirror 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, unframed glass mirror -- 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, said that the duty imposed 'shall be levied for a period of five years'.

The government has imposed the $82 per tonne and $217 per tonne duty on different Chinese firms on isopropyl alcohol, which has medical and industrial uses. It is also used as an antiseptic for skin and instrumentation, and hand sanitiser.

On imports of sulphur black, whose total imports in 2023-24 was $4.3 million, a duty of up to $389 per tonne has been imposed. It is used for dyeing textile, paper and leather.

Similarly, import of thermoplastic polyurethane, which has applications in automotive, medical and electronics industries, will now attract anti-dumping duty in the range of $0.93 per kg to $1.58 per kg.

The anti-dumping duty of cellophane transparent film, used as a packing material, has been kept at $1.34 per kg. In 2023-24, the total imports of the product stood at about $60 million.

On unframed glass mirrors, the anti-dumping duty of $234 per tonne has been imposed.

These duties are imposed after recommendations for the same were made by the commerce ministry's investigation arm DGTR.

Earlier this month, the DGTR has initiated a probe into alleged dumping of as many as six products, including certain chemicals, and cold rolled electrical steel and black toner powder cartridge, imported from China following separate complaints from domestic players.

The Directorate General of Trade Remedies is probing the dumping of 1,1,1,2-Tetrafluoroethane or R-134a; Acrylonitrile Butadiene Rubber; certain antioxidants; polytetrafluoroethylene; black toner powder cartridge; 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 for imposition of anti-dumping duty on these imports with a view to guard them from cheap imports.

If it is established that these dumplings have caused material injury to domestic players, the DGTR recommends the imposition of 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 hurt because of a surge in cheap imports.

As a countermeasure, they impose these duties under the multilateral regime of Geneva-based World Trade Organization. The duty is aimed at ensuring fair trading practices and creating a level-playing field for domestic producers vis-a-vis foreign producers and exporters.

India has earlier already imposed anti-dumping duty on several products to tackle cheap imports from various countries, including China.

India and China both are members of the WTO. China is the second largest trading partner of India. The country has time and again flagged serious concerns over the widening trade deficit with the neighbouring country, which stood at $85 billion in 2023-24.