The Vietnam Competition Authority has proposed the Ministry of Industry and Trade slap temporary anti-dumping tariffs on stainless steel items imported from China, Indonesia, Malaysia and Taiwan.

In the petition, the authority suggested tariffs of between 6.45% and 6.99% on products from China, 12.03% on Indonesian products, 14.38% on Malaysian items and between 13.23% and 30.73% on products from Taiwan.

In its petition, the authority announced findings from investigations into the dumping of cold-rolled stainless steel products in Vietnam, and proposed the anti-dumping margins for a provisional period of 120 days.

Imported stainless steel is the third product to face trade defense measures but the first to be levied antidumping tariffs since the country issued an ordinance on the fight against antidumping in 2004.

Currently, cold-rolled stainless steel products imported into Vietnam are subject to a tariff range of between zero and 10% depending on their origins, but the floor rate of 0% applies to products from China and some other ASEAN countries under free trade agreements signed between Vietnam and such countries.

The competition authority noted that stainless steel products being dumped on the Vietnamese market have caused material injury for domestic producers. The action is taken after five months of launching the investigation.

It is unknown when the Ministry of Industry and Trade will approve the petition to impose the anti-dumping measure.

There are currently two major stainless steel producers in the country, namely Posco VST and Hoa Binh Inox Joint Stock Company, whose combined output accounts for a market share 80% in the country, said Dinh Huy Tam, an expert in the industry and former general secretary of the Vietnam Steel Association.

Tam told the Daily on Tuesday that the increasing amount of imported stainless steel at an unfair price has adversely affected domestic production and pushed local manufacturers into a difficult position.

“I think this is a good step for both local manufacturers and the State management agency,” Tam said.

In early July, the Ministry of Industry and Trade initiated an anti-dumping investigation into stainless steel imported from the above-mentioned economies, two months after Posco VST and Hoa Binh Inox filed lawsuits against importers.Posco VST, the biggest stainless steel manufacturer with an annual output of 235,000 tons, had earlier said it incurred losses in competing with cheap imported products.

Posco VST and Hoa Binh Inox therefore had lodged the complaints at the Vietnam Competition Authority, demanding anti-dumping tariffs of between 20% and 40% against imported stainless steel products.

Source: http://english.thesaigontimes.vn/