India’s Directorate General of Safeguards (DGS) has announced that it has revised the safeguard duty rates imposed in March this year on hot rolled steel sheets and plates (excluding coils) just ahead of the expiry of the minimum import price (MIP) on Thursday, August 4.
The revised safeguard duty rates are applicable in case of import prices below $504/mt. The safeguard duty will be 10 percent up to September 2016, will be reduced to eight percent for the period up to September 2017 and will then be cut further to six percent for the period up to March 2018.
The revised duty rates are also in line with the new antidumping (AD) duty recommended by India’s Directorate General of Anti-Dumping and Allied Duties (DGAD) against hot rolled coil imports from China, Japan and South Korea.
Moreover, the DGS has stated that AD duty will be deducted from the safeguard duty applicable for the imported product.
Indian Steel Ministry officials clarified that the combination of safeguard duty and antidumping duty is more compliant with World Trade Organizations (WTO) norms, and so the two duties have been finalized, while no final decision has been taken on extending the MIP which is facing strong opposition from other members of the WTO.