Trade commission to review extending Chinese glass anti-dumping duties

South Korea's trade commission said Thursday it has decided to review local requests to slap anti-dumping duties on Chinese float glass products, citing unfair price cutting.

   The move reflects formal complaints raised by KCC Corp. and Hankuk Glass Industries Inc. that claimed lifting punitive duties will hurt local manufacturers, the Korea Trade Commission (KTC) said.

   "The two South Korean companies said recent moves by Chinese glassmakers to increase manufacturing capabilities could lead to unfair undercutting of prices in the future," a official said.

   He said after careful consideration, the KTC decided to accept the request, which can lead to the extension of the current anti-dumping duties.
"The new probe can begin if the finance minister agrees on the validity of the case raised by local companies, with the entire review process to take around six months," the official said.

   Seoul had checked unfair price allegations raised by local glass manufacturers and slapped punitive duties of 12.73-36.01 percent on Chinese float glass products starting Oct. 29, 2007. The measures are due to expire Oct. 28 of this year, which could lead to an influx of cheap products.

   Float glass is a type of common flat glass 4-13 millimeters thick. It is used in the building of homes, apartment buildings, office towers and other structures that require transparent glass. As of 2009, the size of the local market stood at around 400 billion won (US$319.2 million).