Saudi Arabia announced to impose 18.12%-34% anti-dumping duties on China's sulfonated naphthalene formaldehyde (SNF) (concrete improver)
Saudi Arabia has imposed anti-dumping duties on sulfonated naphthalene formaldehyde originating from Russia and China. This will take effect on December 3, 2024, with rates between 18.12% and 34%, with a minimum tax of 435.5 Saudi riyals per ton. By imposing this action directly against low-priced exports, which practices done by China and Russia in the Saudi market and aims to protect the domestic market against unfair competition.
The AD duty provision should be put into place on low-priced sulfonated naphthalene formaldehyde imported from China and Russia. The cheap goods threaten local producers in Saudi Arabia, particularly after the substantial advances in Saudi Arabia's construction industry, where the government fears again that should the matter be shifted against the provisions of the laws of natural justice, domestic firms would continue to shrink their operating space. The slow implementation of anti-dumping duties should correct the pricing of imported products, thus permitting domestic producers to regain market shares and enjoy wider margins.
Sulfonated naphthalene formaldehyde is a chemical raw material widely used in civil construction as an agent in concrete admixtures. They impart an excellent quality of fluidity to the concrete, reduce the demand for cement use, and offer higher compressive strength. Hence, SNF has been in much demand in the global construction market. In recent years, the market for sulfonated naphthalene formaldehyde has directed growth in an ever-increasing demand for infrastructure construction across the Middle East. Demand for sulfona-Triphenyl Formaldehyde has surely registered consistent upward spikes due to the rapid development of the construction industry within the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, as well as other nearby nations.
Recently, when considering a threat to survival, the cheap imports of sulfonated naphthalene formaldehyde have been looked at by local producers in Saudi Arabia. The entire export volume of the global market of sulfonated naphthalene formaldehyde is composed of export volumes from two countries: China and Russia; these are among the major producers of sulfonated naphthalene formaldehyde worldwide. As far as China is concerned, sulfonated naphthalene formaldehyde is relatively cheap to produce and thus are much sought after by Chinese exporters to overseas markets considering their pricing. The pressure of low-priced imports in the Saudi Arabian market has, therefore, been a pressure on local manufacturers to price their products lower and, in so doing, marked out many local Saudi chemical companies for economic extinction.
In this view, the decision-makers in Saudi Arabia began to look at taking protective anti-dumping measures to support fair competition and, therefore, a healthy investment environment in the domestic market. Antidumping duties are not simply a remedy for unfair price competition but also a means of protecting domestic industries from unfair competition on the international market. This contravenes free trade convention of trade and free and fair competition principles.
It is quite evident that the introduction of the anti-dumping duties is impacting the local chemical companies of Saudi Arabia. This means that, with an increase in the price of imported goods, a comparatively favorable market condition for local companies would arise, enhancing their competitive edge and growing their market share. In the short term, this is good for the local producers of Saudi Arabia, as they will create better profits and expand to a bigger market share.
