DTI orders the imposition of Provisional Safeguard Duty on Imported Cement

The Department of Trade and Industry issues an order imposing provisional safeguard duties at P400/MT or P16.00 per 40 kg bag in the form of cash bond for 200 days on imports of Ordinary Portland Cement under ASEAN Harmonized Tariff Nomenclature (AHTN) Code 2523.29.90 and Blended Cement under AHTN Code 2523.90.00.

This decision is based on the affirmative findings after conducting the preliminary safeguard measures investigation and considering the submissions of interested parties and pieces of evidence made available to the Department.

During the period of investigation (POI) from 2019 to June 2024, the significant increase in the volume of imported cement from 2019 to 2023 preceded the serious injury to the industry in 2023. While the apparent market contracted throughout the POI except in 2021 when the economy started recovering from the pandemic, the conditions of the competition showed that the market share of local cement producers decreased during the POI from almost 78% in 2019 to almost 68% in 2023, as imports in the domestic market displaced locally produced cement from approximately 22% market share of imports in 2019 to 32% in 2023. As a result, the domestic industry suffered serious injury by experiencing declining sales, production, capacity utilization, profitability, and employment except in 2021 when the economy started to recover from the pandemic. The condition of the domestic industry worsened in 2023 when imports recorded its highest market share at 32% while the domestic industry shrank to the lowest level of sales. In addition, the domestic industry’s lowered price even with the rising cost of production to compete with the imports has impacted the domestic industry’s profitability, recording its first operating loss in the POI.

The existence of a causal link between the increased imports of the products under consideration and the serious injury to the domestic industry has been established, and the existence of critical circumstances was established which warrants the imposition of a provisional safeguard measure in the form of a cash bond, while the case is transmitted to the Tariff Commission for formal investigation. It must be emphasized that a formal investigation by the Commission is wider in scope as it includes marathon public hearings to give all parties directly affected and such other interested parties the opportunity to be heard and to present evidence including the opportunity to respond to the presentations of other parties and to submit their views, inorder to determine whether or not there is a need to impose a definitive safeguard measure.

The DTI Department Administrative Order No. 25-01 shall take effect from the date of issuance by the Bureau of Customs of the relevant Customs Memorandum Order/Circular.

Safeguard measure, pursuant to Republic Act 8800, is a trade policy tool which allows the government to remedy serious injury caused by increased imports. These measures are temporary and are implemented to give injured domestic industries time to adjust to import competition and be competitive. ♦

Date of Release: 26 February 2025