India decides against extending carbon black duties

New Delhi – The Indian government has decided not to extend anti-dumping duties on carbon black imports from China and Russia, the country’s ministry of finance announced 5 Jan.

The move came despite a recent ‘sunset review’ by the commerce ministry’s directorate general of trade remedies (DGTR) recommending a five-year extension of anti-dumping duties on the exports from the two countries.

In its final report published in December last year, the DGTR concluded that there was positive evidence of likelihood of dumping and injury if the existing anti-dumping duties were allowed to cease.

"There is continued dumping of the subject goods from subject countries and the imports are likely to enter the Indian market at dumped prices in the event of expiry of duty," said the DGTR report on 22 Dec 2020. 

The sunset review was initiated upon a petition by the local Carbon Black Manufacturers Association. It claimed that the domestic industry was already fragile as production, capacity utilisation rates, sales volumes and inventories had deteriorated in recent months.

It also alleged that the cessation of antidumping duties would cause material injury to local producers.

India imposed antidumping duties on carbon black products from China, Australia, Iran, Malaysia, Russia and Thailand in late 2008.

In a mid-term review in August 2011, duties were extended for products originating in or exported from Australia, China, Russia and Thailand.

This latest round of review investigated extending the duties, which were valid until November 2020, on the Russian and Chinese imports only.