Central Government urged to continue with anti-dumping duty on PTA in India

08-Oct-14

Chemical and petrochemical manufacturers have urged the central government to protect the home synthetic textile industry from foreign competition, and to specifically continue an anti-dumping duty (ADD) on purified terephthalic acid (PTA), as per Business Standard. PTA, a raw material for polyester production, currently attracts ADD of US$23.75-117/ton on its import from China, Korea, Thailand and the European Union. "The duty protection was needed from cheap dumping from China, South Korea, Thailand and the EU. The domestic industry has in the past two years suffered material injury, resulting in losses to the extent of Rs 5 crore a day. The injury has threatened the very existence of some units," said Mahinder Singh, secretary-general of the Chemical & Petrochemicals Manufacturers' Association (CPMA). PTA, a petrochemical product used for making polyesters, is produced in India by Mitsubishi and Reliance in the private sector and Indian Oil Corporation in the state sector. Before the levy, PTA was exported to India at allegedly "below normal value" and the domestic industry had "suffered material injury due to dumping". However, PTA users contested the findings, saying Reliance had been operating at over 100 per cent capacity.