LONDON (ICIS)--The European Commission has imposed provisional antidumping duties of between 44.9% and 65.2% on melamine imports from China for the next six months, the EU’s executive body said on Tuesday.
Chinese exporters of the product had raised the volume of their sales in the EU market by 30% between 2006 and 2009, while total EU melamine market consumption during the same period had declined by 12% to 323,638 tonnes, the Commission said.

European producers, which make up more than half of melamine output in the EU, had complained of the impact of imports of Chinese melamine on the European market. As a result, the European Commission initiated its antidumping investigation in February.

European imports of Chinese melamine had declined during the antidumping investigation period, the Commission said, but importers’ prices had undercut EU producer prices by 10.3%.

The average price of those imports during the investigation period was €806/tonne.

“As we have seen, there is a clear shortage and now with [the provisional antidumping duties], it will have some very negative effects on the melamine market – not for the producers, who will be happy, but for the buyers and the downstream sectors,” said a major buyer.

Downstream sectors, such as the paper industry, have had to cut down on production as a result of limited melamine availability.

“We don’t see any sense in it. It’s ridiculous. There is a shortage,” added the buyer.

Another buyer said the antidumping measures would have little effect on the market, as so few imports of Chinese material have been coming to Europe this year.

The buyer added: “The melamine market is extremely tight and there are no sizeable volumes of spot to be found anywhere,”

Reaction from European melamine producers to the antidumping measures was pending.

ICIS assessed second and third-quarter European melamine contract prices at €1,110-1,150/tonne ($1,500-1,554/tonne) FD (free delivered) NWE (northwest Europe) and €1,210-1,300/tonne FD NWE, respectively.

Fourth-quarter contract prices settled up by €200-230/tonne from the third quarter at €1,410-1,530/tonne FD NWE.

Melamine spot prices were currently trading at €1,600-1,800/tonne FD NWE.
Europe’s major producers of melamine include Borealis Agrolinz Melamine, DSM Melamine and Zaklady Azotowe Pulawy (ZAP).