Extend duty on flat stainless steel product imports from China

NEW DELHI: With imports from China rising by seven-fold in 3-4 years, industry body Assocham has asked the government to extend anti-dumping duty on flat stainless steel products to save the interests of the domestic industry.

India had imposed anti-dumping duty on imports of cold- rolled flat products of stainless steel in the width range of 600 mm to 1,250 mm in 2010.

"Despite imposition of anti-dumping duty, imports of cold -rolled stainless steel flat products, instead of registering a decline, have actually risen rapidly over last 3-4 years due to large-scale circumvention of anti-dumping duties, mainly from China," Assocham said in a letter to industry minister Anand Sharma.

This has happened because there is no duty below 600 mm and above 1,250 mm now and imports are coming in these width as they are outside the range of anti-dumping duty, it said.

Flat products account for 70 per cent of domestic stainless steel market.

"Had that not been the case, imports would not have gone up so sharply despite the imposition of anti-dumping duties," it said, adding, the circumvention trends were most noticeable in case of China from where imports of stainless steel flat products rose by 690 per cent between 2009-10 and 2013-14.

India, ranks as the third largest consumer of stainless steel, is also world's fourth largest producer. Domestic firms put in massive investments towards modernisation and capacity enhancement, hoping domestic growth would be in double-digit for another 5-6 years.

"However, these investments are now in jeopardy because of widespread dumping of stainless steel flat products from China and the European Union," it said.