Eu May Impose Dumping Duty On Indian Bed Linen

The European Union (EU) may slap anti-dumping duties on Indian bed linen imports, worth more than Rs 325 crore, after high-level consultations this week.

EUs anti-dumping committee will decide on Thursday whether to impose provisional duties on bed linen one of Indias major exports to the Union. The investigation into Indian bed linen was launched in September last year.

The meeting on bed linen comes only a week after a hard-fought battle over unbleached cotton fabric from India and five other countries. A move to impose duties on unbleached cotton fabric, led by the French, was dropped on Friday. The EU member-states voted 9-6 against the duties. However, the French may make a last ditch attempt this week to impose the duties.

Two other countries Pakistan and Egypt also face scrutiny on bed linen exports. Pakistan is the biggest exporter of bed linen to EU. It is, however, likely to get away with lighter anti-dumping duties than many Indian companies.

Indias bed linen exports of EU have risen sharply this year. Between January and March 1996, India exported Rs 95 crore worth of bed linen. This year exports have touched Rs 135 crore in the same period. This is partly because exporters anticipating the duties have been expediting shipments.

Bed linen exporters say their case could not have come up before the anti-dumping committee at a worse time. EU sources say that with last weeks bitter battle over unbleached cotton, the anti-dumping committee could cave in to protectionist demands from France and other countries like Portugal and Italy.

Among Indias top bed linen exporters are companies like Bombay Dyeing and the Anglo-French mills in Pondicherry.

This is the second time that bed linen has come under scrutiny by EUs anti-dumping cell. An earlier case was withdrawn in the middle of last year after staying on the files for nearly two years. After a short gap, a second anti-dumping case was filed in September last year.