India levies anti-dumping duty on black toner from China, others

NEW DELHI: India seeks to impose provisional anti-dumping duty on imports of black toner in powder form orginating in or exported from China, Malaysia and Chinese Taipei for six months, according to a government order issued on Monday.

The duty on a tonne of black toner would range from $196 for imports from Chinese Taipie, $1,686 for imports from Malaysia and $834 for those orginating in or exported from China, it said.

In international trade parlance, dumping happens when a country or a firm exports an item at a price lower than the price of that product in its domestic market. Dumping impacts the price of that product in the importing country, hitting margins and profits of manufacturing firms.

According to global trade norms, a country is allowed to impose tariffs on such dumped products to provide a level-playing field to domestic manufacturers. The duty is imposed only after a thorough investigation by a quasi-judicial body, such as DGTR, in India.

The imposition of anti-dumping duty is permissible under the World Trade Organization (WTO) regime. The duty is aimed at ensuring fair trading practices and creating a level-playing field for domestic producers vis-a-vis foreign producers and exporters.