India may impose anti-subsidy duty on imports of copper wire rods from 4 nations

India may
impose anti-subsidy duty for a period of five years on copper wire rods from
Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam after concluding a investigation that
these imports have impacted domestic players.

The commerce
ministry’s investigating arm Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR) in
September last year started a investigation into an alleged subsidisation of
exports of continuous cast copper wire rods by these four countries.

Hindalco
Industries and Vedanta Industries (Sterlite Copper) had filed an application on
behalf of domestic industry before the DGTR alleging subsidisation of the
products from these four nations, and requested the initiation of an
anti-subsidy investigation.

The
directorate has recommended imposition of definitive countervailing duty (or
anti-subsidy duty) for a period of five years, it said. The finance ministry
takes the final call to impose these duties.

In the investigation,
the DGTR has concluded that the products have been exported to India from these
countries at subsidised prices.

The
directorate has recommended duty in the range between 2.47% and 10.27% on the
landed value of the product in India.

The
petitioners had alleged that the producers/exporters of the goods in these
countries have benefitted from the actionable subsidies provided at various
levels by the governments of these countries.

The period
of investigation was 2017-18 (12 months). It also covered the data of 2014-17.

Countervailing
or anti-subsidy duty is a country-specific duty which is imposed to safeguard
domestic industry against unfair trade subsidies provided by the local
governments of the exporting nations.