Anti-dumping duty on Chinese copper items mooted

New Delhi: THE Commerce Ministry's investigative arm DGTR has recommended imposition of anti-dumping duty on the import of certain copper products, used in electrical industry, from China, Thailand, Korea and three other countries for five years to guard domestic manufacturers from cheap imports.

The Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR) has recommended the duty after concluding its probe that imports of "copper and copper alloy flat rolled products" from China, Korea, Malaysia, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand were below cost and have impacted the domestic industry.

"The authority accordingly recommends imposition of antidumping duty...on all imports of goods...originating in or exported from China, Korea, Malaysia, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand for a period of five years," the DGTR said in a notification.

The duty suggested is in the range of $42 per tonne to $1,077 per tonne. The finance ministry takes the final call to impose these duties and issues notification for the same.

"The authority is of the view that imposition of antidumping duty is necessary to offset dumping and injury," it added.

The DGTR conducted the probe following a complaint by a domestic player, Agarwal Metal Works.

Copper flat rolled products are used in power distribution, electrical and electronic switchgear, automotive electronics, and radiators.

The directorate is the investigative arm of the commerce ministry, which probes dumping of goods, a significant increase in imports and subsidised imports from India's trade partners.

These countries are important trading partners of India.

Countries carry out anti dumping probes to determine whether their domestic industries have been hurt because of a surge in cheap imports. As a countermeasure, they impose duties under the multilateral regime of the WTO (World Trade Organisation).

The duty is to ensure fair trade practices and create a level-playing field for domestic producers concerning foreign producers and exporters.