Philippines producers lose appeal to extend import duty

The Tariff Commission (TC) in the Philippines has declined an appeal by local cement producers to extend the customs duty on imported cement. According to the Manila Bulletin, the three-year customs duty designed to safeguard the local industry from imports is due to expire in October 2022. Although the Cement Manufacturers Association of the Philippines (CeMAP) lodged a request with the TC to extend the tariff, the request was denied as the TC found that there was “no imminent threat” from imported cement to the local manufacturers.

“Despite the existence of price undercutting, price depression, and price suppression during the period under review (2019 to 2021), the domestic industry has recorded high income from operations as a result of the administrative order. The domestic industry was profitable as its income from operations bounced back in 2021 to pre-pandemic levels of PHP13bn [US$220.4m],” the commission said in a statement. “Return on sales was stable at 13 per cent, attributable to successfully executed cost-cutting and productivity-enhancing industry measures,” it added. It also noted that over the three years the duty has been in place, the local cement sector has been able to stabilise output and expand its capacity to meet the demands of the local market.

“During the period under review, there was no significant overall impairment in the position of the domestic cement industry that constituted serious injury,” the report stated, pointing out that “there is no existence of an imminent threat of serious injury and significant overall impairment to the position of the domestic cement industry in the near future.”