In a move that is causing concern for India’s polyester industry, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry issued a notice levying anti-dumping duty for imports of purified terephthalic acid (PTA) from China, Korea, Thailand and the European Union (EU). The notification, dated June 19, is expected to cause PTA price to rise, therefore making fibers costlier. Duties vary between $19.05 and $117.09 for a tonne (or 1,000 kilograms).
The PTA Users Association, which represents manufacturers of polyester chips, polyester films and polyester filament yarn, has appealed to the Union Government to withdraw its recommendation for imposition of the duty on PTA imports. The association reports that the provisional anti-dumping duty will impact over 20,000 small and medium-scale polyester fiber and product manufacturers in the country.
According to Indo Rama Synthetics, the duty will only “increase the cost of a poor man’s fabric and at the same time will go against the growth of the polyester fiber industry.”
In a press release, the polyester manufacturer said the recommendation to impose the anti-dumping duty seemed to be done in hurry without understanding and proper calculations. “The only beneficiary of anti-dumping duty imposition in India looks to be largest and integrated polyester player and this move will kill the competition in the industry, unfair to Indian consumers,” according to the press release.