NEW DELHI: Prices of a variety of goods, such as automotive tyres and tubes, motor vehicle parts, outdoor furniture, surgical gloves and footwear, could go up if the government goes ahead with a proposal to levy anti-dumping duties on rubber chemicals from China and Korea.
The duty of up to Rs 60 per kg, recommended by the directorate general of anti-dumping (DGAD) after it found that prices prevailing in exporting countries were higher than the prices offered to Indian importers, will be implemented as soon as it is notified by the finance ministry, said a commerce department official, who asked not to be named.
The decision may result in an increase in the cost of production of a number of products that use rubber and rubber compounds, which, in turn, could push up prices. Rubber chemicals are used as quality enhancers in the production of rubber and rubber compounds.
The investigations were carried out following a complaint filed by Nocil, India’s largest rubber chemicals manufacturer, on behalf of the domestic industry. In its petition, Nocil said dumping of rubber chemicals by China and Korea had rendered the domestic industry unviable, resulting in two producers, Bayer India and ICI India, stopping production of these items.
After going through submissions of all the interested parties, the DGAD, the commerce department’s arm for carrying out anti-dumping investigations, observed that imports originating from China and Korea are taking place at dumped prices and it has affected the performance of the domestic industry in terms of profits, cash flow and return on investment.
The final duties recommended by the DGAD on a variety of rubber chemicals range from Rs 11.31 per kg to Rs 60.59 per kg.
Source : The Economic Times