India initiates dumping probe against rubber from 5 nations

India has started a probe into alleged dumping of a certain kind of rubber by Korea, Russia, South Africa, Iran and Singapore following a complaint from Reliance Industries.

The move is aimed at protecting domestic players in the sector against cheap imports.

The Directorate General of Anti-Dumping and Allied Duties (DGAD), an arm of the Commerce Ministry, has begun investigating imports of 'polybutadiene rubber' from these regions.

In a notification, DGAD has said it has found sufficient prima facie evidence of dumping of the product from China.

"The authority initiates an investigation into the alleged dumping of the product" from these five countries "to determine the existence, degree and effect of any alleged dumping and to recommend the amount of anti-dumping duty, which, if levied, would be adequate to remove the injury to the domestic industry," the notification said.

The period of investigation covers April 2015 and March 2016. However, for the purpose of injury investigation, the period will also cover the data of previous three years, i.e. 2012-2015.

The product is mainly used in used in the manufacture of tyres. It is also used to manufacture golf balls, various elastic objects and to coat or encapsulate electronic assemblies, offering high electrical resistivity.

Reliance Industries Ltd has filed an application before the authority for initiation of anti dumping investigation.

Countries start anti-dumping probes to determine whether their domestic industries have been hurt because of a surge in cheap imports. As a counter measure, they impose duties under the multilateral regime of WTO.

The duty is aimed at ensuring fair trading practices and creating a level-playing field for domestic producers vis-a-vis foreign producers and exporters.

India has already imposed an anti-dumping duty on several products, to tackle cheap imports from countries, including China.