Unfair trade practices

Just recently, the Vietnam Trade Office in the Philippines advised Vietnamese cement exporters to actively cooperate in the investigation to avoid unfavorable outcomes after the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) imposed safeguard duties on cement imports on top of the regular import duties.

Vietnam News reported on March 5 that according to Phung Van Thanh, trade counselor at the Vietnam Trade Office in the Philippines, the DTI, during its preliminary investigation, identified cement exporters supplying the domestic market, including Vietnamese companies and that while the DTI sent questionnaires to these exporters, only nine out of 33 responded, including six Vietnamese exporters.

To minimize potential losses, the report stated that Thanh has recommended that during the upcoming formal investigation, Vietnamese cement exporters should actively provide relevant information to the investigating authorities. He emphasized that this is crucial to prevent unfavorable decisions based on incomplete or preexisting information.

He further emphasized that the core aspect of a safeguard investigation is to assess the severe injury suffered by the Philippine cement industry due to imported cement. Therefore, it is necessary for a representative from the Vietnam cement industry to bring businesses together, collectively review the situation, provide information, and have a unified voice with the Philippine investigating agency in reviewing and analyzing the actual impact, he said.

Last Feb. 20, the DTI issued an order imposing provisional safeguard duties of P400 per ton or around $6.9 per ton on two types of imported cement, namely Portland cement and blended cement, to protect domestic cement production after conducting a preliminary safeguards investigation on imports of these cement types from 2019 to 2024.

The investigation led to the imposition of provisional safeguard duties, which will remain in effect for 200 days from the date the Bureau of Customs issues the tariff order. The Tariff Commission will then conduct a formal investigation to determine the need for a definitive safeguard duty.

Vietnam News reported that Vietnam holds the largest market share of imported cement in the Philippines. In 2024, cement imports from Vietnam totaled 7.2 million tons, accounting for 94.4 percent of total imports.

Thanh stated that given these figures, the imposition of a provisional duty would have a considerable impact on Vietnam’s cement exports.

According to an investigation conducted by the DTI, the volume of cement imports increased continuously from 2019 to 2023. The share of imports also rose from 30 percent in 2019 to 47 percent in 2023 and 51 percent in the first half of 2024.

The local cement industry was found to have suffered serious injury caused by increased imports, as shown by a significant decline in market share from 78 percent in 2019 to 68 percent in 2023 and 66 percent in the first half of 2024. Sales revenues likewise dropped from 2019 to 2023 by around 19 percent.

Vietnam News, in another report, stated that Vietnam’s share of total cement imports further increased to 91 percent in 2020, 93 percent in 2021, 94.5 percent in 2022 and 98 percent in 2023. From January to June 2024, cement imports from Vietnam accounted for 93 percent of total cement imports into the Philippines.

Among the 38 cement exporters to the Philippines, 18 are from Vietnam.

The Vietnam Trade Office in the Philippines pointed out that a safeguard measures investigation is different from anti-dumping investigations, which can apply different duties to different exporters.

In February 2023, the DTI issued an order imposing definitive anti-dumping duties on imports of Ordinary Portland Cement Type 1 and Blended Cement Type 1P from a number of Vietnamese exporters for a period of five years, citing an imminent near-future threat of material injury to the local cement industry.

The Tariff Commission has also initiated an interim review of the anti-dumping duties imposed on these imports from Vietnam after members of the local cement industry and the DTI requested that the scope be expanded to include Blended Cement Type 1T and other previously excluded foreign exporters.

Dumping duties are imposed when foreign manufacturers sell their products at prices below their normal value in their home country. Dumping is considered an unfair trade practice.

However, it is not only the Philippines that is complaining about the injurious effects of the surge of cheap, dumped imports from Vietnam.

Global Cement reported that Taiwan’s Ministry of Finance has issued its preliminary findings in its anti-dumping investigation into Vietnamese cement and clinker, confirming that Vietnamese firms engaged in dumping. Six out of 21 investigated producers had dumping margins of 16 to 20 percent, while others faced a margin as high as 24 percent. The investigation is now in its final phase.

It also reported that Vietnam’s cement production increased by seven percent during the first two months of 2025 compared to the same period last year. In February, production increased by 24 percent.

Vietnam’s cement supply is expected to outpace demand this year. Cemnet reported that Vietnam’s cement industry faces a tough year as supply continues to outstrip demand, with domestic cement supply projected at 124.75 million metric tons for 2025 compared to projected demand of just 63.5 million metric tons.

Cemnet also noted that export markets remain challenging for Vietnam with Taiwan investigating anti-dumping practices, and the Philippines considering additional self-imposed taxes. The report added that intense regional competition from Indonesia and Thailand, along with strict environmental regulations in Europe, has further hindered export opportunities for Vietnam.

We can expect Vietnam to continue finding ways of bringing in more of their cement into their largest market, which is the Philippines, especially with China, another key export market for Vietnam, reducing imports due to weak demand stemming from difficulties in its real estate sector. China’s reduced cement imports has left Vietnam facing a more difficult oversupply issue in the cement market.

Our government should never let its guard down to protect a vital industry such as cement. Unfair trade practices have no place in the new world trade order.

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