The Ministry of Commerce Photo: VCG

China's Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) announced on Sunday that investigative authorities had found evidence of dumping of polyformaldehyde copolymer imported from the US, the EU, Japan and China's Taiwan region.

The investigation concluded that the Chinese mainland's polyformaldehyde copolymer industry had suffered material injury, and that a causal link exists between the dumping and the injury. 

Polyformaldehyde copolymer is used either directly or after modification in products such as automotive components, electronic and electrical appliances, industrial machinery and everyday items. It can partly replace metal materials such as copper, zinc and tin.

Effective from Monday, importers must pay the corresponding anti-dumping duties to the General Administration of Customs when importing polyformaldehyde copolymer from the US, the EU, China's Taiwan region and Japan. The implementation period will last five years, according to a MOFCOM statement. 

As for the anti-dumping duty rates, the margins are set between 3.8 and 74.9 percent, according to the MOFCOM notice. 

Ticona Polymers Inc and other US companies are subject to a duty rate of 74.9 percent. The margin for Celanese Production Germany GmbH & Co KG and other EU players is set at 34.5 percent, according to the notice.

The margins for companies based in China's Taiwan region are set at 3.8 percent for Polyplastics Taiwan Co and 4 percent for Formosa Plastics Corp. Other companies from the Taiwan region are subject to a rate of 32.6 percent. 

As for Japanese companies, Polyplastics Co faces a rate of 35.5 percent while Asahi Kasei Corp is subject to a 24.5 percent levy. The margin for other Japanese firms is 35.5 percent. 

On May 19, 2024, the MOFCOM announced the initiation of an anti-dumping probe into imports of polyformaldehyde copolymer from the US, the EU, China's Taiwan region and Japan. 

The anti-dumping probe is part of the normal toolkit used by WTO members to contain any potential impact on the domestic market, and it is an allowed practice under the framework of the WTO, Tu Xinquan, dean of the China Institute for WTO Studies at the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing, told the Global Times in a previous interview regarding the investigation.

It should be noted that China is quite restrained in applying trade remedy measures compared with some countries, Tu said.

On January 16, 2025, investigative authorities issued a preliminary ruling, which found that there was dumping of imported polyformaldehyde copolymer from the US, the EU, China's Taiwan region, and Japan. The industry in the Chinese mainland had suffered material injury, and there existed a causal relationship between the dumping and the material injury.

Global Times