Local manufacturers are urging the government to impose a definitive safeguard duty on cement imports to allow the industry to compete with foreign suppliers and retain their workforce.
‘We need this safeguard to ensure the industry remains viable and to protect local jobs,’ Cement Manufacturers Association of the Philippines Inc. (CeMAP) executive director Rey Baja said in a statement.
CeMAP said cement manufacturers in the Philippines are not receiving subsidies, unlike some Vietnamese cement suppliers that enjoy support from their government allowing them to sell at lower prices.
‘It is of national interest to promote and protect the local cement industry against unfair competition from other countries,’ Baja said.
CeMAP said business groups like the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Federation of Philippine Industries also support the imposition of a safeguard measure to protect local jobs.
Cement manufacturing contributes at least one percent to the country’s gross domestic product and supports around 130,000 jobs.
The industry group also expects cement prices to be stable even if a definitive safeguard measure is imposed.
‘We also don’t think it will result in higher prices,’ Baja said.
According to CeMAP, cement prices have been stable despite the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI)’s imposition of a provisional safeguard duty on cement imports.
In February, the DTI issued an order imposing a provisional safeguard duty of P400 per metric ton or P16 per 40-kilogram bag of imported cement after finding a causal link between increased cement imports and injury to the domestic industry.
The provisional safeguard duty is in place for 200 days while the Tariff Commission decides on whether a definitive safeguard measure should be implemented.
Republic Act 8800 allows the government to impose a safeguard measure in the form of increased tariff on certain imports when there is serious threat or injury caused by a surge in import of like products.
CeMAP said the country’s cement imports reached 7.6 million metric tons last year, with the bulk coming from Vietnam.
While the local industry has a total capacity of 51 million tons, actual production dropped to 27 million tons, while demand was only around 35 million tons.
This led to P5 billion in losses, slower operations and job cuts.
With the industry in a difficult position, CeMAP said a definitive safeguard measure is needed to make local cement manufacturing viable.