According to a report released by the Tariff Commission of the Philippines, at the close of a formal investigation, safeguard duties on imported glass should be retained for another three years, to gi…
According to a report released by the Tariff Commission of the Philippines, at the close of a formal investigation, safeguard duties on imported glass should be retained for another three years, to give the country“s sole manufacturer – AGC Flat Glass Philippines, Inc. – more time to boost its competitiveness, adding that not doing so would result in an abundance of low-priced imports that would cause problems to the aforementioned company. “Should the safeguard measure be terminated, China and Indonesia, because of their proximity to the Philippines and their sufficient freely disposable production capacities, and as major sources of imports since 2002, pose a threat to the domestic industry as exports to the Philippines is likely to increase substantially,” the report stated. “If safeguard measure is removed, AGC Flat Glass will be forced to price its [goods] even below its cost to protect its market share which will further worsen the financial condition of [the firm]. There is a threat of recurrence of serious injury if the safeguard measure is not extended.” The report also declared that the glass manufacturer was complying with commitments to improve operations to compete against possible imports. The commission recommended the Trade department to continue imposing duties on clear and tinted float glass – PHP 3,583 and PHP 4,526 per ton, respectively – which is scheduled to be decreased annually by 5% each year until December 2012. The same mechanism was also recommended for duties on figured glass for a three-year period, due to be reviewed in early 2010, depending on whether AGC Flat Glass resumes production of this variant. According to the commission, the local glass industry should be protected as it provides the exclusive benefits of employment and after-sales guarantees.