NEW DELHI: The government may impose anti-dumping duty on the imports of black toner powder, used printers and photocopiers, from China, Malaysia and Taiwan to guard domestic players from cheap shipments.
The commerce ministry's investigation arm Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR) has initiated a probe into alleged dumping of 'Black Toner in powder form' from these three countries following a complaint filed by Indian Toners and Developers Ltd and Pure Toners and Developers.
Toner is used in laser printers, photocopiers, digital multifunction devices to form the printed text and images on the paper.
DGTR in a notification has said that on the basis of the prima facie evidence submitted by the companies about the dumping of the product, it has initiated the investigations.
"The authority hereby initiates an investigation to determine the existence, degree and effect of any alleged dumping," it said.
According to the notification of the Directorate, the company has requested for the imposition of anti-dumping duty on the imports.
If the probe finds that dumping has caused material injury to the domestic industry, the directorate would recommend the amount of anti-dumping duty.
Countries carry out anti-dumping probe to determine whether their domestic industries have been hurt because of a surge in cheap imports.
As a countermeasure, they impose duties under the multilateral regime of the World Trade Organization. The duty is aimed at ensuring fair trade practices and creating a level-playing field for domestic producers.