Response from M/s Magadi Soda Co. Ltd., Ivas received by the due date.

Response to the questionnaire/notification was filed by the following Importers/user Associations:

1. M/s Hindustan Lever Ltd.

2. M/s Hind Lever Chemicals Ltd.

3. M/s Hindustan National Glass and Industries Ltd.

4. M/s Victory Glass Industries Ltd.

5. M/s Floatglass India Ltd.

6. M/e Hindustan Sanitaryware and Industries L:d.

7. M/s Owens Broackway India Ltd.

8. M/s Empire Industies Ltd.

9. M/s Excel Glass

10. M/s Triveni Glass

11. M/s Eagle Flask Industries

12. M/s Haldyn Glass Cu jarat Ltd.

13. M/s Haldyn Glass Ltd.

14. M/s Mohan Breweries

15. M/s U.P. TWIGA

16. M/s CG Glass Ltd.

17. M/s Universal Glass

18. M/s Alembic Glass Industries Limited

19. M/s Mahalaxmi Class Works Ltd.

20. M/s Indian Soap & Toiletries Maker’s Association;Mumbai

21. M/s A11 India Glass Manufacturers’ Federation, Delhi

22. M/s Henkel J5PIC India Ltd., Chennai

23. M/s Soluble Silicates (P) Ltd.,

24. M/s Tara Glass & Silicate Works, Calcutta

25. M/s Mohan Crystal Glass Works, Ghaziabad

26. M/s Hind Chemicals, Calcutta

27. M/s Gujarat Glass Ltd., Mumbai

28. M/s Nahar Industrial Enterprises Ltd., New Delhi

Response from M/s Procter & Gamble, Mumbai was received after the due date.

xii) Additional information regarding injury and standing was sought from the petitioner, which was also furnished. The information on injury and cost of production was provided by M/s Birla VXL, M/s DCW, M/s Gujarat Heavy Chemicals Ltd. and M/s Tata Chemicals Ltd.

xiii) the Authority conducted on the spot investigation at the premises of the petitioners) to the extent considered necessary;

xiv) The Authority kept available non-confidential version of the evidence presented by various interested parties in the form of a public file maintained by the Authority and kept open for inspection by the interested parties;

xv) Cost investigation was also conducted to work out optimum cost of production and cost to make and sell the subject goods in India on the basis of Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and the information furnished by the petitioners.

xvi) ****in this notification represents information furnished’ by an interested party on confidential basis and so considered by the Authority under the Rules;

xvii) Investigation was carried out for the period starting from 1.4.98 to 30:6.99 i.e. the period of investigation (POI).

B. VIEWS OF EXPORTERS, IMPORTERS AND OTHER INTERESTED PARTIES

1. PETTTIONER’S VIEWS

a) The domestic and imported Soda Ash can be used interchangeably. The manufacturing process and the equipments used for the manufacture of Soda Ash are common all over the world and does not involve a special or a different process.

b) The end-users of Soda Ash are using domestic and imported product interchangeably, the product being imported and produced by the domestic industry are similar and like products as- defined under the anti-dumping Rules.

c) Soda Ash imports have increased from 30563 MT in 1995-96 to 50632 MT in 1996-97 to 171413 MT in 1997-98 and further to 150066 MT in 1998-99.

d) The market share of imports in total demand has increased from 2.06% in 1995-96 to 3.43% in 1996-97 to 10.96% in 1997-98 and to 11% in 1998-99.

e) The imports from China which were nil in 1996-47 increased to 96620 MT in 1997-98 and 107852 M T in 1998-99. The market share of China, in total imports has increased from 56.36% in 1997-98 to 70% in 1998-99.

f) Market share of domestic Soda Ash - industry in total demand/consumption has decreased from 97.94% in 1995-96 to 85% in 1998-99.

g) Capacity utilisation for all manufacturers has decreased tremendously from 85.94% in 1997-98 to 75% in 1998-99.

h) Production has also decreased and inventories have increased in 1998- 99 over 1997-98 from 70476 MT to 190505 MT (till October for the year 1998-99). Closing stock as percentage of domestic sales has increased from 10.74% in 1997-98 to 26.95% (till October ,98) in 1998-99.

i) Domestic sales have also decreased and current market share are maintained only by giving large discounts and very long credit facilities.

j) The cost of production of Soda Ash by synthetic process is more or less same in various countries. Applying the same parameter to China which is otherwise a closed economy (not being a member of WTO) and no access to information whatsoever from there, it would not be unreasonable to assume that the cost of production has to be comparable with manufacturers in other countries.

k) Chinese manufacturers are dumping Soda Ash in India and dumping margin is at least US$115/MT.

2. EXPORTER’S VIEWS

M/s Tianjing Bohai Chemical Industry Group Corporation, has made the following submissions:

(a) They distinguish stone and salt for Soda Ash sold in domestic market from one for Soda Ash exported. In domestic market, a long-term and stable supply of Soda Ash is made for the regular customers and, therefore, stone and salt is purchased on a long-term contract basis to ensure the stable supply of raw materials. On the other hand, on exports to India which is on both spot and long-term contract basis, stone and salt for Soda Ash sold in India is purchased on both long, term contract basis and spot basis in order to deal with change of market demand in India.

b) They have two lines in Tianjin Soda Plant of which number one line solely produces Soda Ash by solvay process and so the cost is higher, while the number two line produces both Soda Ash and Ammonium Chloride by combination process and the cost is lower. Therefore, the production cost of Soda Ash in domestic market and that exported is different.

c) Soda Ash for the domestic market needs to satisfy additional specifications. Customers in China request intensive support from supplier including technical support, timely and frequent delivery or other incidental services. Therefore, there is need to assign more sales and research and developmental resources which result in high overhead cost.

The information received from other exporters pertaining to questionnaire has been provided on confidential basis.

3. IMPORTER’S VIEWS

a) Various importers have provided data on imports from China and other countries of Soda Ash as well as indigenous purchases during the period of investigation and previous years alongwith evidence.

h) Same invoicing, payment procedure, documentation etc. is followed for imports from China and Kenya. The only difference is that for imports from China, Indian agents are involve

c) The indigenous industry is still controlling the market for 89% demand. The small share of imports cannot be construed to cause an injury to the petitioner. Further no irreparable damage to capacity utilisation of Indian industry which even now is operating at 80-85% capacity has been caused.

d) No evidence has been produced about the local selling prices in China for the different periods without which the investigation will , be totally futile and leading to wrong findings.

e) Inland freight in India is higher and the local product is costlier than the imported material wherein the sea freight is cheaper.

f) Soda ash domestic manufacturers have increased the price two times every from 1991 to 97. This points to some sort of understanding between the manufacturers. The manufacturers have monopolised the Soda Ash market and ended up in profiteering.

g) Import of Soda Ash on a mass basis started only when rate of Soda Ash reached to an exorbitant level in the year 1997. Moreover there was a downward trend in international price of Soda Ash since that time. The current rate of soda ash is in the region of 115US$ CIF at Calcutta Port not only from China but from Other places as well like Romania, Russia, Bulgaria and Australia.

h) The import of Soda Ash has given lakhs of industries a breather and due to advantages of low price of soda ash they became competitive to the extent that they started exporting their product.

i) Domestic manufacturers can reduce their cost to the extent of discount they are currently offering just by delivering soda ash by sea and not by rail.

j) M/s Tata Chemicals has still earned a profit of Rs. 181.67 crores for the accounting year ending on 31.3.99. They can further improve their performance by cost cutting and increased turn over. They should become cost efficient and should not look for protection.

k) Indian soda ash manufacturers too have exported soda ash to Nepal, Bangladesh etc. during POI at almost the some cost of Soda Ash from China.

C. EXAMINATION BY AUTHORITY

The foregoing submissions made by the exporters, the importers, the petitioner and other interested parties, to the extent these are relevant as per Rules and to extent these have a bearing upon the case, have been examined and considered and have been dealt with at appropriate places in these findings.

1. PRODUCT UNDER CONSIDERATION

The product under consideration in the present investigation is Disodium Carbonate popularly known as Soda Ash classified under custom sub-heading 2836.20 of the Custom Tariff Act, 1975. The product under consideration is also classified under sub-heading no. 28362001 and 28362002 under the harmonized ITC system as dense and light Soda Ash respectively.

Soda Ash is an industrial chemical with chemical formula Na2C03 used for manufacture of alkali products soap, detergents, cleaning compounds and sodium based chemicals. It is also used for manufacture of float, container and specialty glasses, silicate and some chemicals. The two types of Soda Ashy being manufactured and marketed by domestic industry are Soda Ash (‘aunt) and Soda Ash (dense). Soda Ash is produced by two process iechrologies viz. dissolution process employed in those parts of the world whey-r natural deposits of sodium Carbonate occur on a large scale and by synthetic processes including solvay process, Akzo dry lime process and dual process where natural resources do not occur. The domestic industry employs all the three types of synthetic process. In the solvay process the raw brine prepared by dissolving crude solar salt in raw water is purified by use of milk of lime and Soda Ash to prepare purified brine which is then ammoniated in ammonia absorber to prepare ammoniated brine. ‘Ammoniated brine is carbonated to precipitate Sodium Bi-carbonate which is then filtered to separate crude bi-carbonate cake which is further heated to decompose into the product Soda Ash light. The dense Soda Ash is made mechanically compacting light Soda Ash.

Akzo dry lime process is a modification of the conventional solvay process to the extent that milk of lime slurry is not prepared and the heat of hydration of lime and of chemical reaction are sufficient to raise the mother liquor to the boiling temperature thereby reducing the steam and lime consumption in distillation process as compared to solvay process. In the dual process, .the Ammonia recovery unit and milk of lime section are dispensed with and an Ammonium Chloride section exists where the Ammonium chloride is crystalised and recovered.

2. LIKE ARTICLE

In order to examine whether Disodium Carbonate produced by the domestic industry is a Like Article to the Disodium Carbonate exported from Peoples Republic of China characteristics such as physical, characteristics (purity, density etc.) manufacturing process and technology, functions and uses, product specifications, pricing, distribution and marketing and tariff classification of the goods have been considered.

4. NORMAL VALUE & EXPORT PRICE

Under Section 9A(1)(c), normal value in relation to an article means:

(i) the comparable price, in the ordinary course of trade, for the like article when meant for consumption in the exporting country or territory as determined in accordance with the rules made under sub section (6); or

(ii) when there are no sales of the like article in the ordinary course of trade in the domestic market of the exporting country or territory, or when because of the particular market situation or low volume of the sales in the domestic market of the exporting country or territory, such sales do not permit a proper comparison, the normal value shall be either:-

(a) comparable representative price of the like article when exported from the exporting country or territory or an appropriate third country as determined in accordance krith the rules made under subsection (6); or

(b) the cost of production of the said art1cle in the country of origin along with reasonable addition for administrative, selling and general costs, and for profits, as determined in accordance with the rules made under sub-section(6);

Provided that in the case of import of the article from a country other than the country of origin and where the article has been merely transshipped through the country of export or such article is not produced in the country of export or there is no comparable price in the country of export, the normal value shall be determined with reference to its price in the country of origin.

The Authority had sent exporters questionnaires to all the known exporters for the pose of determination of normal value in terms of the Section cited above Authority notes that M/s Qingdao Soda Ash Co. Ltd., China, M/s Tianjin Bohai Chemical Industry (Group) Corpn. Ltd., China, M/s Dahuachem International Economic do Trade Corpn.,China and M/s Jiangsu Yongli Chemical do Technology Imports do Exports Corpn., have provided information. The normal value for the following exporters who have responded have been assessed separately.

M/s Qingdao Soda Ash Co. Ltd., China

Normal Value

The Authority notes that exporter has claimed normal value separately for the two grades of Soda Ash. The exporter has claimed no adjustment. The authority notes that exporter has not furnished the cost of production and hence the authority can not evaluate the transactions as normal or below cost of production. However, the authority has on the basis of information furnished evaluated the normal value by treating all transactions as normal for the purpose of preliminary determination pending further investigation. The weighted average normal value for the two grades comes to ***$/MT.

Export Price

The exporter has claimed export price on the basis of average selling price to customers in India. The exporter has claimed adjustments on inland freight, handling, taxes, port charges, commission, overseas freight, duty refund and interest. The Authority has allowed these adjustments for the purpose of preliminary findings pending further investigation. The authority has also allowed ocean insurance to an extent of * $/MT on the basis of petitioner data and importers response. The weighted average export price for the two grades comes to ***$/MT.

M/s Tianjin Bohai Chemical Industry (Group) Corpn. Ltd., China

Normal Value

The Authority notes that exporter has claimed normal value separately for the two grades of Soda Ash. The exporter has claimed adjustments on incidence of interest. The Authority has disregarded the adjustment on interest as it is not substantiated for the purpose of preliminary determination pending further investigation. The exporter has also provided month wise transaction details on domestic sales made in period of investigation. The Authority notes that the exporter has also provided cost of production of the subject goods separately for two grades for the domestic sales. Scrutiny of the same reveals that in certain transactions the same is above selling price. The Authority has disregarded the transactions made at a loss. The Authority notes that the remaining transactions are significant and representative for the purpose of determination of normal value. The weighted average normal value for the two grades comes to ***$/MT.

Export Price

The exporter has claimed export price on the basis of average selling price to customers in India. The exporter has claimed adjustments on inland freight, port charges and overseas freight. The Authority has allowed these adjustments for the purpose of preliminary findings pending further investigation. The authority has also allowed ocean insurance to an extent of *$/MT on the, basis of petitioner data and importers response. The weighted average export price for the two grades comes to ***$/MT.

M/s Dahuachem International Economic & Trade Corpn., China

Normal Value

The Authority notes that exporter has claimed normal value separately for the two grades of Soda Ash. The exporter has claimed adjustments on the inland freight, storage and taxes. The Authority has disregarded the adjustments on inland freight and taxes as these are unsubstantiated. The adjustment on storage is disregarded as only ex-factory value is considered. The exporter has also provided month wise transaction details on domestic sales made in period of investigation. The Authority notes that the exporter has also provided cost of production of the subject goods separately for two grades for the domestic sales. Scrutiny of the same reveals that in certain transactions the same is above selling price. The Authority has disregarded the transactions made at a loss. The Authority notes that the remaining transactions are significant and representative for the purpose of determination of normal value. The weighted average normal value for the two grades comes to ***$/MT for the purpose of preliminary determination pending further investigation.

Export Price

The exporter has claimed export price on the basis of average selling price to customers in India. The exporter has claimed adjustments on inland freight, storage, overseas freight, overseas insurance and shipping charges. The Authority has allowed these adjustments for the purpose of preliminary findings pending further investigation. The weighted average export price for the two grades comes to ***$/MT.

M/s Jiangsu Yongli Chemical & Technology Imports de Exports Corpn.,China

Normal Value

The Authority notes that exporter has claimed normal value separately for the two grades of Soda Ash. The exporter has not claimed any adjustments., The exporter has also provided transaction wise details on domestic sales made in period of investigation. The Authority notes that the exporter has also provided cost of production of the subject goods separately for two grades for the domestic sales. Scrutiny of the same reveals that in certain transactions the same is above selling price. The Authority has disregarded the transactions made at a loss. The Authority notes that the remaining transactions are significant and representative for the purpose of determination of normal value. The weighted average normal value for the two grades comes to ***$/MT.

Export Price

The exporter has claimed export price on the basis of average selling price to customers in India. The exporter has claimed adjustments on inland freight, port charges and overseas freight. The Authority has allowed these adjustments for the purpose of preliminary findings pending further investigation. The authority has also allowed ocean insurance to an extent of *$/MT on the, basis of petitioner data and importers response. The weighted average export price for the two grades comes to ***$/MT.

For the non-cooperating exporter the normal value has been referenced on the basis of response of one of the cooperating exporters. Export price for the non-cooperating exporters has been calculated on the basis of the CIF value of the residual imports of the subject goods after deducting imports from cooperating exporters from the total imports and correlating the same with the port wise imports provided by petitioner and the imports data of DGCIS.

5. DUMPING-Comparison of Normal Value & Export Price

The rules relating to comparison provides as follows:

''While arriving at margin of, dumping, the Designated Authority shall make a fair comparison between the export price and the normal value. The comparison shall be made at the same level of trade, normally at ex-works level and in respect of sales made at as nearly possible the same time. Due allowance shall be made in each case, on its merits, for differences which affect price comparability, including differences in conditions and terms of sale, taxation, levels of trade, quantities, physical characteristics, and any other differences which are demonstrated to affect price comparability.''

For the purpose of fair comparison between the normal value and the export price, the Authority has considered taking into account the normal value and export price determined, as detailed- above at ex-works level.

The dumping margin for exporters comes as under: