India’s Director General Trade Remedies recently said that during the oral hearing conducted on 29.03.2019, it was pointed out by various interested parties that the inclusion of certain ITC HS Codes had resulted in widening of the scope of PUC through inclusion of copper wire under its ambit.

It was contended that imports from the subject countries comprise significantly higher proportion of copper wire whereas the product manufactured by the domestic industry has much higher proportion of copper wire rod as compared to copper wire. In order to address this issue, it is proposed to adopt PCN methodology by adopting following PCNs for having a fair comparison between PUC and the like article.

a) Continuous Cast Copper Wire Rods
b) Copper wire

Hindalco Industries and Vedanta Industries (Sterlite Copper) had filed an application on behalf of domestic industry alleging subsidization of Continuous Cast Copper Wire Rods, from Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam and requested for initiation of an anti-subsidy investigation for levy of countervailing duties on the imports of the subject goods, originating in or exported from the subject countries.

The product under consideration in the present investigation is “Continuous Cast Copper Wire Rods” classifiable under custom sub headings 7407.1010, 7407.1020, 7408.1190, 7408.1920, 7408.1990, 7409.11,7409.19