TRA recommends keeping anti-dumping measure on aluminium foil

The Trade Remedies Authority (TRA) has proposed that an anti-dumping measure on imports of aluminium foil in rolls from China be kept in place.

The TRA opened a transition review into the anti-dumping measure on 20 May 2024 to assess whether the measure was still needed to ensure UK producers were able to compete fairly.

Aluminium foil in rolls is commonly used for food-related use by caterers, in hotels, restaurants and is also used in hair and beauty treatments. The TRA has estimated that the UK consumes around 14,300 tonnes of it each year.

In its Statement of Essential Facts, the TRA found that the dumping initially identified at the time the measure was first established would continue or recur if the measure was removed and that injury to the UK production industry would be likely as a result.

The TRA found that the market for aluminium foil in rolls is defined by intense price competition, with both domestic and foreign suppliers competing for share. Retailers and consumers are highly responsive to price changes, and domestic producers expressed concern that low-priced imports from China could disrupt the market balance if the anti-dumping measure was revoked.

The TRA has therefore proposed keeping the anti-dumping measure, which ranges from 14.2% to 35.6%, in place for five years from 6 June 2024.

Interested parties now have until 27 October 2025 to comment on the SEF and can do so through the TRA’s public file.

Notes

• The Trade Remedies Authority is the independent UK body that investigates whether new trade remedy measures are needed to counter unfair import practices and unforeseen surges of imports.
• The TRA is an arm’s length body of the Department for Business and Trade.
• Anti-dumping duties allow a country or union to act against goods which are being sold at less than their normal value – this is defined as the price for ‘like goods’ sold in the exporter’s home market.
• The period of investigation is from 1 January 2023 to 31 December 2023.

source: GOV