China launches probe into stainless steel imports from EU, Japan, South Korea, Indonesia

BEIJING (Reuters) - China’s Commerce Ministry said on Monday it has launched an anti-dumping probe into imports of stainless steel billet and hot-rolled stainless steel sheet and plate from the European Union, Japan, South Korea and Indonesia.

Labourers work at a steel market in Shanghai January 9, 2013. C REUTERS/Aly Song

The move follows a complaint by Shanxi Taigang Stainless Steel (000825.SZ), with backing from four other mills including Baosteel’s stainless steel division, it said.

China imported 703,000 tonnes of those products in 2017, up almost 200 percent from a year earlier, with 98 percent coming from the regions targeted by the investigation.

The rapid increase in imports caused real damage to the Chinese market, according to the complaint filed by Shanxi Taigang and released with the commerce ministry document.

Shanxi Taigang accounts for 25-35 percent of China’s stainless production.

Reporting by Muyu Xu and Josephine Mason; editing by Richard Pullin

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