Antidumping body investigates steel pipe imports
Antidumping body investigates steel pipe imports
JAKARTA (JP): The Indonesian Anti-Dumping Committee (KADI) is
investigating steel pipe imports from Japan, China, South Korea
and Singapore, following charges that the pipes were sold through
dumping practices.
The move was taken in response to a petition filed by four
local steel pipe producers -- PT Bakrie Pipe Industries, PT South
East Asia Pipe Industries, PT KHI Pipe Industries and PT Bumi
Kaya Steel Industries.
"Based on an assessment of the petition, KADI has found strong
indications that steel pipe imports with dumping prices have led
to losses for local manufacturers of similar products," the
committee said in a decree issued on Sept. 13, 1999, a copy of
which was made available on Tuesday to The Jakarta Post.
"KADI has decided to investigate the steel imports from the
four countries, starting from the issuance of this decree," the
committee said in the decree signed by secretary Muchtar.
The Association of Indonesian Steel Pipe Manufacturers
welcomed the committee's decision.
"We hope the committee will complete the investigation soon,"
association chairman Warasdimulya told The Post.
The association earlier complained that its members could not
compete with steel producers from the four countries on the
domestic market, because they carried out unfair dumping
practices.
The association called on the government to slap antidumping
fees on steel pipe imports from the four countries to save local
manufacturers from bankruptcy.
It said the country's steel industry had been forced to cut
its output to 200,000 tons per year, from 1.5 million tons per
year, due to reduced demand resulting from the economic crisis.
The association said dumping practices carried out by steel
pipe producers from the four countries had aggravated the
financial difficulties of local steel producers.
The committee did not specify in its decree the names of steel
producers to be investigated.
But the association has accused the Japanese firm Marubeni of
dumping practices to win the tender to supply steel pipe for the
natural gas pipeline project in the South China Sea.
The 560-kilometer underwater pipeline is being developed to
transmit natural gas from the area west of Natuna Island to
Singapore.
The tender for the pipeline's construction was won by PT
McDermott Indonesia, a subsidiary of American construction firm J
Ray McDermott SA.
The association said it had been informed by the Indonesian
trade attache in Tokyo that the selling price of about US$540 set
by Marubeni for McDermott was about half the selling price set by
the company in its home country. (jsk)