India conducts anti-dumping probes based on applications filed by domestic manufacturers who show prima facie evidence of dumping of goods in the country, claiming injury. New Delhi: India will respond faster to complaints about dumping of Chinese goods, as the country looks to stimulate local production and reduce dependence on imports. The commerce and industry ministry plans to reduce the time taken to initiate anti-dumping cases by a few days, from around 30 days now.
This is chiefly aimed at protecting domestic companies from unfair trade practices. “Almost half of our anti-dumping cases are against China and imports from them do major damage…our response time will be short,” said an official. The government usually responds within a month and has, in some cases, even done so within two weeks.
“The endeavour is to reduce it further. These measures are used to counter unfair trade practices and structural changes have led to a reduced response time,” the official added. In fact, the average number of days taken to initiate anti-dumping investigations came down to 32 in 2019 from 259 days in 2016.
The Covid-19 pandemic this year has, however, led to data gaps, with domestic manufacturers unable to access the detailed information required to challenge cheap Chinese imports before the Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR), a quasi-judicial body which recommends such measures. The finance ministry takes a final call on imposing the same.
DGTR, which comes under the commerce and industry ministry, is investigating around 35 cases of dumping from China across products including chemicals, steel, polyester yarn, copper and various yarns. This week, it recommended anti-dumping duty on organic base aniline and antimicrobial agent ciprofloxacin hydrochloride imported from China.
India conducts anti-dumping probes based on applications filed by domestic manufacturers who show prima facie evidence of dumping of goods in the country, claiming injury. As of December 31, 2019, there were definitive anti-dumping measures in force against 92 Chinese products. Industry sources said the government has drawn up a prescriptive list of 300 products on which it can impose restrictions and encourage local manufacturers to begin production.
Source: indiatimes.com