China Levies Dumping Duties on Imported European Chemicals

China has imposed preliminary anti-dumping duties on imports of a chemical produced in the European Union, the Commerce Ministry said on Feb. 28, 2013, in the latest trade restrictions to emerge as China decries growing global protectionism. Europe and the United States also have been ramping up their use of trade remedies to halt what they say are unfairly priced and subsidised imports from China, the world's second-largest economy.

China's Commerce Ministry added toluidine, used in different forms in dyes, medicines and pesticides, to the growing list of imported chemicals it has targeted with duties. "There is dumping of imported toluidine originally produced in the European Union, and China's domestic industry has been substantially damaged as a result of that dumping," the ministry said in a statement on its website.

Beginning in March, the ministry said LANXESS Deutschland GmbH, a subsidiary of German chemicals manufacturer Lanxess AG, would be hit with preliminary duties of 22.2 percent. All other European companies face 36.9 percent tariffs on the chemical, which must be paid as a deposit until the ministry's decision is finalised.