India’s anti-dumping duties on PVC expire

24-Feb-14

India’s government had decided earlier this year to extend the duration of anti-dumping investigations on PVC imports, according to a notification made from the Ministry of Commerce and Industry on January 24, as per ChemOrbis. This followed the expiration of duties as of January 23, 2014. Prior to the declaration there had been conflicting reports and confusion as to whether materials brought into the country would be subject to the additional fees. However, the declaration noted that duties would be in place until the end of the investigation, which was set for March 4, 2014. Yesterday, a trader in India reported that the anti-dumping duties were deemed to be illegal past their expiration date of January 23, 2014. Reportedly, as per the law, anti-dumping duties can only be levied for five years with an extension of one year. Since the anti-dumping duties had been levied starting in 2008, their legal duration ended in January of 2014 although the customs authority was insisting that cargoes from the USA, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Japan, China and Taiwan had to be cleared with payments of the additional duties. According to a decision filed February 19th, anti-dumping duties on imports from these countries are now removed. The trader said that until the sunset investigation is completed and new duties are applied, buyers can import from these origins without paying the additional fees, according to ChemOrbis.