Govt plans anti-dumping steps

"India’s anti dumping machinery should be strengthened to counter both dumping by other countries as well as the imposition of anti-dumping duties by other countries," Sharad Bhansali, director of the anti-dumping division of the Commerce Ministry told a seminar organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).

The new government is expected to deliver its first blow against unfair foreign competition next week by slapping anti-dumping duties on some chemical products. The new government has laid down economic nationalism as a central policy plank. BJP said that while most countries espouse free trade they all pursue their own agendas. "In practice, they(other countries) compulsively resort to quotas, tariffs and anti-dumping measures to protect their national interests," the BJP said in its manifesto for the recent elections.

Dumping refers to the sale of goods to a foreign country at a price below production cost or below the price prevailing in the domestic market.Anti-dumping has become a prickly subject particularly in emerging economies. They say the major trading countries, including the United States and the European Union, are imposing more duties on their goods.

On Thursday, the European Union imposed anti-dumping duties on unbleached cotton imports from India, along with China, Egypt, Indonesia, Pakistan and Turkey. The average level of the duties, effective April 9, would be 15 per cent while and duties imposed on Indian exports were set at 16.9 per cent. The Indian cotton mills industry has asked the government to contest the European Union move through the World Trade Organisation. Other Indian exporters were also the subject of dumpingallegations.

On Friday, 10 US manufacturers of stainless steel round wire petitioned their government to impose anti-dumping duties on wire makers from India, Japan, Korea, Spain, Taiwan and Canada.

But India says the number of cases of it being sinned against is increasing as it opens its markets following the economic reforms begun in 1991. "The process of liberalisation and the consequent lowering of import barriers has brought with it an increase in the number of dumping cases in India," the CII said in a background paper to the seminar.

"At the same time, many countries are invoking anti-dumping measures that are adversely affecting Indian exports," it added.