India slaps anti-dumping duty on vitamin-C from China

The government has imposed an anti-dumping duty of $3.99 per kg on vitamin-C imports from China, for a period of five years, after investigations found that cheaper import of the commodity has caused "material injury" to domestic industry.

The finance ministry imposed the provisional anti-dumping duty following recommendation by the commerce ministry, the Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) said in a notification.

The Directorate General of Anti-dumping and Allied Duties (DGAD) had recommended the anti-dumping duty on vitamin-C imported from China after investigations found that "the domestic industry has suffered material injury" due to such imports.

The anti-dumping duty would be effective for a period of five years, it said.

The vitamins being imported from China were at below its normal value and was causing material injury to the domestic industry, DGAD said.

India had imposed anti-dumping duties on several other products, including yarns, fabrics, colour picture tubes, aluminium products and chemicals, imported from China.

India has reported the highest number of antidumping investigations - around 42 - along with Brazil and China, between July and December 2008, according to a recent World Trade Organisation (WTO) report.