China imposed a five-year anti-dumping tax on imported PET chips made in the Republic of Korea (ROK) on Feb. 3, according to a statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation (MOFTEC) in Beijing Sunday.

MOFTEC initiated the anti-dumping investigation on Aug. 3, 2001, and began temporary anti-dumping measures against imports of the product on Oct. 29, 2002.

The MOFTEC statement said the cash deposit provided by importers according to the first arbitration will be counted toward the final arbitration and transferred into anti-dumping tax.

The cash deposit for value-added tax in the import course will also be transferred into tax, MOFTEC said.

According to the final investigation and relevant Chinese anti-dumping regulations, MOFTEC judged dumping did take place and the State Economic and Trade Commission (SETC) concluded the imports did cause substantial damage to the domestic industry.

The two departments judged that there was a causal relationship between the dumping and damage, according to the statement.

The Tariff Policy Commission of the State Council adopted MOFTEC's suggestion and decided to impose anti-dumping tax on the product, the statement said.

China Takes Formal Anti-dumping Measures on ROK-made Fiber

China took formal anti-dumping measures on Feb. 3 against imports of polyester stable fiber produced in the Republic of Korea (ROK) by imposing anti-dumping duties on the product, the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation (MOFTEC) announced Sunday.

In response to an appeal from the domestic industry, MOFTEC launched its anti-dumping investigation on Aug. 3, 2001, and decided to take temporary measures on Oct. 22, 2002.

The MOFTEC investigation found that dumping did take place, and the State Economic and Trade Commission (SETC) concluded that the imports did cause substantial damage to the domestic industry.

MOFTEC and SETC judged that there was a direct causal relationship between the dumping and damage, according to the final finding on the basis of China's anti-dumping regulations.

MOFTEC said that importers of ROK-made polyester stable fibers should start paying anti-dumping taxes to Chinese customs for a period of five years.

The anti-dumping tax rate ranges from 2 percent to 48 percent, and those cash deposits provided by importers in response to the preliminary judgment will be transformed into taxes, according to MOFTEC.

(Edited from Xinhua News Agency, February 10, 2003)