BANGKOK: China's ministry of commerce on Thursday announced it would impose five-year anti-dumping tariffs on stainless steel seamless tubes imported from the European Union and Japan. The move comes as China hopes to turn a profit on imports as well as assist local businesses in developing the sector for use in the world largest country. Duty rates will range from 9.2 percent to 14.4 percent and will become effective on Friday, the ministry was quoted as saying by local media. An investigation showed that the EU and Japan have been dumping high-performance stainless steel seamless tubes into the Chinese market, substantially harming Chinese producers. China launched an anti-dumping probe into steel tubes made in the EU and Japan in September last year. According to a ministry official on Thursday, speaking to Bikyamasr.com via telephone, the goal is to assist in allowing the local market to fend for itself against the influx of cheaper models from Japan and the EU. “We believe this will be a key move to assist our own Chinese steel makers in having a chance in the local market with Chinese companies,” said the official, who did not give specific information about when the new levies would begin. China believes that it can be a manufacturing hub for a wide range of products, and hopes that larger production centers and local steel makers can assist in creating a new market in the country.
