China extends dumping duties on phenol imports

03/02/2009 12:00 - 686 Views

SHANGHAI (Reuters) - China said on Saturday that it would extend anti-dumping duties on imports of phenol, a chemical compound used to make some antiseptics, medicines and plastics, from Japan, South Korea, the United States and Taiwan.

The duties had been due to expire on February 1 but will now be extended by as much as a year while the Ministry of Commerce investigates whether removing them would damage domestic industry, the ministry said in a brief statement.

China has been levying anti-dumping duties on phenol since 2003 because of complaints that low-cost imports were hurting its industry. Importers have been required to deposit between 3 and 144 percent of the value of shipments with the ministry.

Senior officials from around the world, including Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, warned at the World Economic Forum in Switzerland this week that the global economic crisis could fuel trade protectionism, worsening the slump.

New anti-dumping investigations rose by 39 percent from a year earlier to 85 in the first half of last year, according to the World Trade Organization. China was by far the most frequent target of such investigations, accounting for 37.

(Reporting by Andrew Torchia; Editing by Jan Dahinten)

Sat Jan 31, 2009 2:20am EST

Source: www.reuters.com