Government imposes import duty on construction steel

The government has finally approved a request from local steel producers to impose a safeguard import duty on certain construction steel products amid a surge in import.

The Ministry of Finance has issued Regulation No 12/PMK.010/20 on safeguard import duties for certain construction steel products of I and H sections, which are categorized in the harmonized system tariff codes of ex 7228.70.10.00 and 7228.70.90.00.

The import duty will be valid for three years from January 21 of this year. The duty in the first year is set at 26 percent, second year at 22 percent, and in the final third year at 18 percent.

According to a study by the Indonesia Trade Security Committee (KPPI), there had been a surge in the import of construction steel production during the period 2010-2013 particularly from China, Malaysia and South Korea, eroding the market share of local producers.

Editing by Reiner Simanjuntak