EU investigates PET anti-dumping allegations against China

LONDON (ICIS)–The European Commission announced the initiation of an anti-dumping investigation concerning imports of certain polyethylene terephthalate (PET) originating from China.

The product subject to this investigation is PET with a viscosity of 78 ml/g or higher.

The investigation of dumping and injury will cover the previous year, from 1 January 2022 to 31 December 2022. The examination of trends relevant for the assessment of injury will cover an expanded time-frame from 1 January 2019 to the end of the investigation period.

According to the official journal of the European Union, all interested parties wishing to comment on the complaint have 37 days from 30 March 2023 in which to do so.

Any requests for a hearing with regard to the initiation of the investigation must be submitted within 15 days of the 30 March 2023. Those wishing to submit information on the product scope must do so within 10 days of the date of 30 March 2023.

The complaint, made on behalf of the Union industry of PET, was lodged on 14 February 2023.

Market participants have been anticipating news of the investigation, as demand has been pitched against high costs in Europe at the start of 2023.

PET resins can be broadly classified into bottle, fibre or film grade, named according to the downstream applications. Bottle grade resin is the most commonly traded form of PET resin and it is used in bottle and container packaging through blow moulding and thermoforming.

Fibre grade resin goes into making polyester fibre, while film grade resin is used in electrical and flexible packaging applications. PET can be compounded with glass fibre for the production of engineering plastics.

Thumbnail picture: A bottled water display in Hangzhou, China (source: Shutterstock)