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| India To Invoke Safeguard Duty On HR Coil Imports? |
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India's government is considering invoking a 25% safeguard duty on imports of HR coils from the world's sources at the request of major domestic steelmakers such as Essar Steel Ltd, it was learned in Tokyo Tuesday. The secretariat staff with the Indian government recently prepared a draft of the safeguard duty. If the Indian government determines to execute the safeguard duty, the execution will deal a severe blow to Japanese-affiliated automakers operating in India because they depend on imports of high-grade HR coils from Japan for an essential material. Japan's HR coil exports to India totaled 45,881 tons in 2005. Then, annual Japanese HR coil exports there increased to 93,582 tons in 2006; 133,919 tons in 2007; and 164,136 tons in 2008, up by a factor of 3.5 from the level of 2005. A major growth of the Japanese exports followed remarkable developments of local demand industries requiring high-grade steel products. Besides, it is understood that India's steel industry proved inadequate in its supply volumes of high-grade steel products to meet local requirements. India's various steelmakers filed antidumping cases in late November last year against imports of HR coils from 15 nations including Japan. At present, the Indian government is in course of conducting its investigation into the AD cases. Besides, India's major steelmakers such as Essar Steel Ltd have solicited the government for the safeguard duty as if to give an additional blow to the world's HR coil suppliers. In this connection, it is likely that Japan will seek the exemption from India's AD and safeguard measures in Japanese exports of high-grade HR coils to local Japanese-affiliated automakers, according to Japanese steel industry sources. |
| last modified : Fri 08 May, 2009 [10:39] |
