Commin calls meeting of tyre cos to discuss anti-dumping duty
NEW DELHI: Taking forward the probe for possible imposition of anti-dumping duty on imports of a certain kind of radial tyres, the Commerce Ministry has called a meeting of the domestic players on March 28.
Automotive Tyre Manufacturers’ Association (ATMA) had filed the application on behalf of the domestic producers -- Apollo Tyres, J K Tyre Industries and Ceat Ltd for the investigations in dumping of the tyres.
The other major manufacturers of radial tyres in India include MRF and Goodyear.
The Directorate General of Anti dumping and Allied Duties (DGAD), in its investigation, has found sufficient prima facie evidence of dumping of the tyres by Chinese companies.
The probe was on the dumping of ‘new/unused pneumatic radial tyres with or without tubes and/or flap of rubber (including tubeless tyres) having nominal rim diameter code above 16’ used in buses, lorries and trucks.
Demanding anti-dumping duty on the product, industry expert said that the truck and bus radial tyre installed capacity in India has gone up, while production by domestic manufacturers has come down as compared to last year.
“The market size has expanded but almost the entire growth has been absorbed by the increasing Chinese imports at predatory prices,” ATMA Chairman Satish Sharma said.
He said this is very de-motivating for the domestic manufacturing and puts returns on investments made at risk.
“The other fallout will be the slowdown of future investments in the category. We look forward to the government for a favourable conclusion via slapping of anti-dumping duties on the Chinese imports,” he added.
Countries initiate antidumping probes to determine if the domestic industry has been hurt by a surge in belowcost imports. As a countermeasure, they impose duties under the multi-lateral WTO regime.
Anti-dumping measures are taken to ensure fair trade and provide a level-playing field to the domestic industry. They are not a measure to restrict imports or cause an unjustified increase in cost of products.