India announces AD duties on stainless steel imports

India's Commerce Department is planning to impose anti-dumping duties on certain stainless steel imports from China, Malaysia and South Korea in an attempt to shield the domestic industry from cheap dumping imports.

Under the proposal, anti-dumping duties of $ 306 per tonne or more will be levied on imports of stainless steel rolled products from these countries. The introduction of duties on stainless steel imports will be implemented from April this year. The tax will apply to 304 grade stainless steel sheet with a thickness of 1.2-10.5 mm, for coils, sheets and plates with a thickness of 3-105 mm, and for all types of products up to 1650 mm wide.

The AD duty recommendation came following a dumping investigation between April 2012 and June 3013 following complaints filed by Jindal Stainless in March 2014. The investigation also drew attention to stainless steel imports between 2009 and 2012. According to the investigation, the total volume of stainless steel imports to India increased by almost 50 percent in 2011 compared to 2009. At the same time, imports from these countries soared 350 percent. Even though imports declined slightly between April 2012 and June 2013, China's stainless imports continued to rise, accounting for 70 percent of total imports over that period.

Domestic demand for stainless steel flat products increased by almost 17 percent in the 2012/13 fiscal year compared to 2009/10. However, the market share of imports from these countries increased sharply compared to domestic demand, from 10 percent in 2009/10 to 28 percent in 2012/13. This negatively affected the sales of domestic factories of these products. In addition, the cheap prices of dumped imports have suppressed the prices of the domestic stainless industry and reduced the profitability of Indian enterprises.