US hits China receipt paper with more duties

12/05/2008 12:00 - 830 Views

WASHINGTON: The United States will impose a second layer of duties, ranging up to 133 per cent, on Chinese-made paper used to print credit card and automatic teller receipts, the US Commerce Department said on Wednesday in a preliminary decision.

The department said in March it would impose preliminary countervailing duties ranging up to 60 percent on the lightweight thermal paper to offset Chinese subsidies.

The anti-dumping duties announced on Wednesday are in addition to the countervailing duties. They are being imposed because China is selling the thermal paper in the United States at "less than fair value," the Commerce Department said.

Appleton Papers Inc., based in Appleton, Wisconsin, filed a case last year asking for duties. The company manufactures a variety of thermal paper used for point-of-sales receipts, like those generated at gasoline pumps and other retail outlets.

Gil Kaplan, lead counsel to Appleton and a partner in the King & Spalding law firm, said the case showed "just how deeply into our infrastructure unfair trade practices have penetrated."

The Commerce Department also set a preliminary anti-dumping duty of 6.49 percent on lightweight thermal paper from Germany.

8 May, 2008, 0402 hrs IST, REUTERS

Source: www.reuters.com