China Seamless Pipe Import: Import of ‘seamless pipes’ and ‘tubes’ from China more than doubled to 4.97 lakh tonnes in the financial year 2024-25 on an annual basis. Domestic manufacturers’ organization STMAI gave this information. According to industry data, the country had imported 2.44 lakh tonnes of ‘seamless pipes’ and ‘tubes’ from China in the financial year 2023-24. Import in the financial year 2022-23 was 1.47 lakh tonnes. Whereas in the financial year 2021-22 it was 82,528 tonnes.
STMAI President gave information
Shiv Kumar Singhal, President of the Seamless Tube Manufacturers Association of India (STMAI), said that in the last financial year, China’s pipe imports have increased almost five times as compared to the financial year 2021-22. “Despite the strong support provided by the Government of India through various safeguards to protect the domestic ‘seamless pipe’ industry, China’s pipe imports have increased rapidly over time,” Singhal said. These efforts have proved largely ineffective in curbing imports from China.
The industry organization said that Chinese companies are dumping ‘seamless pipes’ in the Indian market. They are also evading taxes and duties through over-billing at Indian Customs. “Chinese importers are reportedly declaring inflated ‘bill’ values at the time of customs clearance, while later selling the same products in the Indian market at much lower prices than domestic manufacturers,” Singhal said. This practice undermines fair trade and causes serious harm to Indian producers.
China is not only hurting the Indian economy by supplying extremely cheap pipes to the market but is also creating serious security concerns by supplying substandard materials to critical sectors like thermal power, nuclear energy and oil and gas. Singhal said that the minimum import price of ‘seamless pipe’ is Rs 85,000 per tonne and the market price of small quantity of Chinese pipe in the Indian markets is Rs 70,000 per tonne.
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