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Govt extends import taxes on some steel products

India has extended the safeguard import taxes on some steel products until March 2018 as it looks to curb imports of cheap Chinese steel and shield the domestic mills, a government order said.

The order said the extended duty will apply to hot-rolled flat products of non-alloy and other alloy steel in coils of 600 mm width. It would start at 20%, minus any existing anti-dumping duty, and be lowered to 10% by March 2018, depending on the value of the goods.

The safeguard tax will not be imposed on steel products imported at or above the floor price.

China last year increased its exports of steel products as demand slowed at home, leading to increased regulatory scrutiny and new duties in markets such as India and the European Union, as well as anti-dumping investigations.

India, last September, imposed a provisional safeguard import duties on some steel products for 200 days, and last month set a floor price on imports to deter countries such as China from undercutting local mills, the first such move in more than 15 years.

The chief of the Directorate General of Safeguards, a division of the finance ministry, earlier this month recommended a 20% import tax on some products.