RI seeking to end dispute with RP over cement trade

Adianto P. Simamora, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The Ministry of Trade and Industry expects its Philippine counterpart to nullify a safeguard duty on Indonesian cement imports, thus ending a dispute over cement trade, a senior government official said on Friday.

Director General of International Cooperation at the Ministry of Trade and Industry Hatanto Reksodiputro said that the duty must be canceled after acknowledgment by the Philippine Tariff Commission last week that the influx of Indonesian cement products had not hurt the Philippine cement industry.

Hatanto added that Indonesians the right file a complaint with the World Trade Organization (WTO) if the Philippine government fails to revoke the extra import duty within 120 days of issuing its statement.

"We are still awaiting a final decision," he said.

Under a WTO ruling, each member country is allowed to impose a safeguard measure to protect a particular local industry if evidence exists that it is threatened by an influx of imports.

The Philippine government imposed an increase of 20.6 pesos (about 1 U.S. cent) late last year in extra duties per bag of imported Indonesian cement following accusations by the Philippine Cement Producers Association (Philcemcor) that the imports were threatening the existence of local cement makers.

According to data from Philcemcor, cement imports from Indonesia reached 369.473 metric tons in 2000, or about 23.4 percent of the total Philippine market of 1.6 million metric tons.

From January to September 2001, Indonesian imports rose sharply to 944.715 metric tons, or 50 percent of the country's total market of 1.865 million metric tons.

But the Philippine Tariff Commission said in its report that the Indonesian cement products caused no injury to the country's cement industry.

This means that the Philippine government is now obligated to immediately revoke the safeguard duties on Indonesian cement products, according to the WTO ruling.

Hatanto added that the Philippine government did not notify the WTO when it imposed the duty.

He said that, until the Philippines government revokes the duty, Indonesian cement producers must continue paying the tariff while selling their products in the Philippines.