China to hit Indonesia, Japan, EU, South Korea stainless steel imports with anti-dumping duties
- Taxes ranging from 18.1 per cent to 103.1 per cent will be imposed on all stainless steel billets and hot-rolled stainless steel plates from Tuesday
- Indonesia in particular has benefited from the Belt and Road Initiative, according to Foshan-based Metal Materials Industry Association
China will impose duties on stainless steel imports from the European Union, Japan, South Korea, and Indonesia this week in response to the damage caused to the domestic industry by products sold at below fair market prices, the Ministry of Commerce announced on Monday.
Anti-dumping duties ranging from 18.1 per cent to 103.1 per cent will be imposed on all stainless steel billets and hot-rolled stainless steel plates from Tuesday.
“Dumping from the EU, Japan, Korea, and Indonesia has caused substantial damages to the Chinese domestic stainless steel billet and hot-rolled stainless steel plate industry,” the Ministry of Commerce statement said. Dumping is a process where an imported product is sold at a price lower than the price normally charged in the home market.
China is the world's largest steel producer and exporter. In 2018, China exported 66.9 million metric tonnes of steel, a 9 per cent decrease from 73.3 million metric tonnes in 2017, according to data from US Department of Commerce.
Dumping from the EU, Japan, Korea, and Indonesia has caused substantial damages to the Chinese domestic stainless steel billet and hot-rolled stainless steel plate industry
Imports from South Korea will be the hardest hit with all manufacturers, apart from Posco, subject to an increased duty of 103.1 per cent duty. Posco shipments will be subject to a duty of only 23.1 per cent.
Manufacturers from all 28 European Union countries will be subject to a 43 per cent tariff, while Japanese imports will be subject to 29 per cent duty, except those form Nippon Yankin Kogyo, which will only attract a 18.1 per cent duty.
Indonesian imports, meanwhile, will be subject to a 20.2 per cent duty.
The ruling follows an anti-dumping investigation initiated in July 2018 after a complaint was filed by state-owned Shanxi Taigang Stainless Steel, which resulted in an initial ruling in March.
Stainless steel billets and hot-rolled stainless steel plates can be processed into cold-rolled steel products or directly used in shipbuilding, shipping containers, railway equipment, power generation equipment and petrochemicals.
China now imports significant amounts of stainless steel billets and hot-rolled stainless steel plates from Indonesia, while there are currently few imports from the European Union, Japan, or South Korea, the Foshan-based Metal Materials Industry Association said in a statement.
The Indonesian stainless steel industry has shared in the success of the Belt and Road Initiative, under which Chinese companies have gone out and expanded into the international market
“The Indonesian stainless steel industry has shared in the success of the Belt and Road Initiative, under which Chinese companies have gone out and expanded into the international market. The final ruling will inevitably have an impact on the domestic downstream processing industry and will also have an impact on the world trade pattern of stainless steel, which may be positive for exports of Chinese steel products,” the association said.
Data from the Stainless Steel Council of China’s Special Steel Enterprises Association shows that both imports and exports of stainless steel decreased in the first quarter of 2019 as China imported 475,200 tonnes, down 26.38 per cent from a year earlier. Exports stood at 797,300 tonnes, a decline of 22.14 per cent from the same period last year.
