KOLKATA: Faced with cheap rubber goods imports from China in a shrinking domestic market, the domestic rubber industry wants first to have some
restrictions on the free flow of Chinese rubber goods into India which are of inferior quality.
Though the industry, right at the moment, is not pressing for imposition of anti-dumping duties on Chinese rubber goods, it wants certain quality standards imposed on import of Chinese rubber goods into India, as per the quality standard norms of Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS).
Like the EU, India can also impose minimum standard requirements as per BIS norms to check free flow of inferior rubber goods from China, at a time when Indian economy is also hit by demand slowdown. This can be done through designated testing laboratories, which is being done in case of imports of several commodities, said MF Vohra, president, All India Rubber Industries Association (AIRIA) and chairman of the rubber products panel (western region), Capexil.
Talking to reporters on Monday, Mr Vohra said though the rubber goods exports is expected to see a dent in growth since October 2008, it would not slip into a negative territory as what happened in case of several export-dependent sectors, which are labour-intensive in nature. Prior to October 2008, exports were growing by around 23%.
But post-meltdown, the growth rate is expected to slip to 10-12%. The export prospect would have been worse had DEPB rates not been restored from November, said Mr Vohra. Last year, India has earned Rs 6,176.6 crore from rubber goods export - with equal contribution from the tyre and non-tyre segments.
To compensate the loss of US and EU markets, which were the main destinations of India’s rubber goods, the industry is concentrating on exploring new markets in Latin America, CIS countries and Africa, which have been identified as ‘Focus’ markets by the commerce ministry.
Feeling the heat of demand slowdown at home and abroad, the Rs 30,000-crore industry is expected to grow 3-4% in the current year, instead of a 12% growth last year, added Mr Vohra.
Meanwhile, India Rubber Expo-2009 is going to be held at Salt Lake stadium, Kolkata, from 28-31 January this year. The expo, jointly organised by AIRIA and Capexil, will mainly feature a reverse buyers-sellers meet, besides showcasing Indian rubber products and organising conferences with the participation from foreign experts.
Source : The Economic Times