Tin can makers oppose tariff wall for NSC

The Tin Can Manufacturers Association of the Philippines (TCMAPI) warned yesterday that granting tariff protection to the National Steel Corp. (NSC) could lead to an increase in the prices of tin cans.

The group expressed fears yesterday that NSC may ask for a tariff protection from the government to be able to resume its production of tin cans and hot and cold rolled coils.

TCMAPI president Henry Tanedo said the group is worried that NSC would then be able to dictate its price for tin cans even though better quality tin cans can be imported since tariff walls have already gone down.

Tanedo said that instead of asking for tariff protection to make the steel firm viable, the NSC should concentrate instead on restructuring its debt burden.

While most of NSC’s creditors have agreed to convert some of their loans into equity in the steel firm, NSC still has a heavy debt load amounting to P2 billion.

Before the restructuring, NSC’s debt had piled up to about P18 billion.

NSC used to produce tin cans, but its output failed to meet the quality standards for food-grade packaging because they were prone to corrosion. – Marianne Go