New measures Imposed to Combat the Dumping of Steel Pallet Racking
16 May 2019
Anti-dumping duties will now apply to beams, uprights and braces exported to Australia from China and Malaysia.
The decision follows a lengthy investigation by the Anti-Dumping Commission into the alleged dumping of certain steel pallet racking exported to Australia from China and Malaysia.
On May 6, 2019, The Minister for Industry, Science and Technology Karen Andrews imposed anti-dumping duties on beams, uprights and braces exported to Australia from China and Malaysia. Her decision was based on the recommendations and evidence made by the ADC in its final report. The findings of fact on which the recommendations are based, and the evidence relied on to support these findings can be found in the Final Report NO. 441 at www.adcommission.gov.au.
Ms Andrews said all components – other than beams, braces and uprights – are exempt from the duties because she was satisfied that other or directly competitive components of steel pallet racking are: not offered in Australia by the Australian industry to all purchasers on equal terms - under the conditions having regard to the custom usage of trade. Components refer to plates, rods, angles and other components used to make static racking structures.
What is Dumping?
Dumping refers to the export of a product at a price that is lower in the foreign importing market than the price in the exporters domestic market. To prevent dumping from causing material injury to the Australian industry, the Federal Government can impose anti-dumping duties. This means, companies importing products below the “fair market value” are charged an additional fee to protect Australian companies that manufacture similar products.
Material Injury
Material Injury to the Australian Industry can include:
• Loss of sales, profits, market share and productivity
• Negative Impacts on prices, cash flow, inventories, and employment
The Decision
This decision means all beams, uprights and braces exported to Australia from China and Malaysia will be subject to anti-dumping duties.
The Investigation
The investigation was first launched on November 13, 2017. According to the ACD, the Australian industry has suffered material injury as a result of exports of steel pallet racking at dumped prices from China and Malaysia. APC has worked alongside the ADC during the investigation period. This has included providing detailed information to the commission including sales and cost data.
APC Engineering Director Chris Fudge said the investigation had caused some confusion in relation to the “goods in question” which have since been more clearly defined and outlined in the final report.
“We now have clear guidelines on what is included and is not included in the terms of reference,” he explained.
“We know where we sit, everyone knows where they sit, which means we can move forward which can only be a good thing.”
Mr Fudge said APC was working closely with suppliers affected by the outcome.
“The decision allows Australian manufacturers the opportunity to invest in or upgrade equipment, which is what we’re doing," he said.
“It supports Australian business, gives us better economies of scale and means we can keep our costs down, providing industry competitive prices.”
Local Manufacturing
APC has been manufacturing and installing Australian-made pallet racking, made from quality BlueScope steel since 1972. Mr Fudge said APC’s customers could remain confident in the fact that the engineering of our products is also done locally to ensure a purpose-built design. To ramp up local manufacturing, we've invested in new equipment and facilities. Our main manufacturing facility is based in Perth and we use a number of local subcontractors throughout Australia and New Zealand which allows us to provide shorter lead times than importing competitors.