Titanium Dioxide Industry Group Goes to South Korea to Deal with Anti-dumping

The Chinese titanium dioxide industry and enterprises actively responded to the Korean anti-dumping case of rutile titanium dioxide
.
On March 31st, an eight-member delegation from Korea’s titanium dioxide case responding to the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, China Titanium Dioxide Industry Association, and titanium dioxide companies returned after participating in a hearing on the investigation into the “industrial obstruction” of China’s rutile titanium dioxide by South Korea.
Return home
.

At the hearing, Vice Minister Liu Chao of the Legal Department of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade stated the necessity and legality of protecting the legal rights and interests of China's titanium dioxide enterprises
.
Liu Chao pointed out that it is extremely rare for South Korean investigative agencies to initiate anti-dumping investigations on the grounds of "impeding the establishment of industries".
This case is also the first trade remedy case since the China-South Korea Free Trade Agreement came into effect.
It has symbolic and exemplary significance
.

On December 30, 2015, the Korea Trade Commission (KTC) issued an announcement to initiate an anti-dumping investigation against coated rutile titanium dioxide (titanium dioxide) originating in China
.
The prosecutor in this case is South Korea's COSMO Chemical Company, and the product involved is coated rutile titanium dioxide
.
The dumping investigation period in this case was from July 2014 to June 2015, and the damage investigation period was from January 2012 to June 2015
.

Under the organization of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, the China Titanium Dioxide Association and three titanium dioxide companies including Lomon, Baililian and Ningbo Xinfu actively responded to the anti-dumping investigation
.
At the hearing held on the 28th, Qu Haiming, deputy general manager of Sichuan Dragon Mang Group, and Zhou Ying, deputy general manager of Ningbo Xinfu Titanium Dioxide Co.
, Ltd.
, introduced the production status of the products involved on behalf of the participating companies and expressed their opinions against continuing the case
.
Representatives of South Korean downstream enterprises participating in the meeting said that Chinese-produced titanium dioxide is an important raw material guarantee for South Korean downstream industries
.
The products involved in the case produced by the prosecution could not meet the needs of the Korean market in terms of output or quality.
The imposition of anti-dumping duties on the products involved would seriously harm the interests of the majority of downstream industries in South Korea and violate the public interest of South Korea
.

On March 29, the Chinese delegation held talks with the Korea Paint and Ink Association.
The two sides expressed that they would actively respond to and cooperate with each other in the follow-up investigation process; on March 30, the Chinese delegation and the Korea Trade Association will implement the China-Korea Free Trade Agreement , Strengthening commercial legal services, in-depth exchange of views, and in-depth lobbying on South Korea's anti-dumping case against China's titanium dioxide
.

　　Liu Chao said that, in fact, for more than ten years, Chinese titanium dioxide manufacturers have established a cooperative relationship of mutual trust and mutual benefit with Korean local downstream companies.
The "occasional suspension" of certain types of products by individual Korean companies is due to market changes and poor management.
As a result, it has nothing to do with the normal export of Chinese companies
.
From a legal point of view, "impeding the establishment of an industry" requires a higher evidence threshold than "material damage" or "threat of material damage", and the evidence provided by the applicant cannot meet the relevant requirements
.
The China Council for the Promotion of International Trade was very concerned at the beginning of this case and urged South Korean investigating authorities to handle this case fairly
.

　　According to customs data, from January to November 2015, China’s titanium dioxide exports amounted to 482,800 tons, and the total trade volume was approximately US$877.
7 million
.
Among them, India, the United States and Brazil are the top three export destinations, with exports of 56,166 tons, 43385 tons, and 40829 tons respectively; South Korea ranked fourth with 38,831 tons of exports, an increase of 11.
37% year-on-year.
The total exports to South Korea in the same period in 2014 The volume is 34866 tons
.