Vietnamese HDPE pellets not subject to safeguarding duties in the Philippines

The TC had proposed the imposition of 2% safeguarding duties on the product over the course of three years as a means of preventing the adverse impacts caused by imported HDPE pellets on domestic production, according to the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT)'s Trade Remedies Authority.

However, the imported HDPE pellets are not to be subject to the tax rate as Vietnam is on the list of developing countries which has an import volume of under 3%.

The Philippines’ administration announced on June 17 that there was no safeguard measure imposed on the importation of Linear Low-Density Polyethylene (LLDPE) pellets and granules from various countries, including Vietnam.

The final decision was based on the Philippine Tariff Commission’s investigation report which concluded that there should be no increase in imports of LLDPE pellets and granules, both in absolute terms and relative to domestic production, during the period of investigation from 2015 to June 2021, according to a statement released by the Philippine Department of Trade and Industry (DTI).

“Since it has been established that LLDPE pellets and granules were not imported in increased quantities during the period of investigation, the determination of serious injury or threat thereof, causation, and unforeseen developments has become moot and academic,” the statement said.

As a result, HDPE pellets, LLDPE pellets, and granules imported from Vietnam will not face safeguard duties in the Philippine market.