Materials maker Celanese Corp. is seeking anti-dumping duties against a South Korean firm for European sales of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene resin.
Dallas-based Celanese filed a petition with the European Commission's Directorate-General for Trade seeking anti-dumping duties on imports of UHMWPE from Korea Petrochemical Industry Co. Ltd. of Seoul into the European Union, officials said in a May 26 news release.
Officials added that a similar anti-dumping case is being investigated in the U.S.
"We were compelled to also file an anti-dumping case against KPIC in Europe to address their destructive pricing practices in that region, which have caused Celanese's UHMWPE business to suffer significantly over the last several years," Engineered Materials Senior Vice President Tom Kelly said in the release.
"Fair and sustainable pricing on a global basis is important for the health of every industry … this will lead to increased supply availability in the marketplace and to broader choices for our customers," he added. "We believe it is our obligation to address these inequities through actions such as anti-dumping duties."
Celanese makes UHMWPE under the GUR trade name. Officials described GUR as a core business and growing market and said that Celanese will continue to support market growth by investing in global manufacturing capabilities.
UHMWPE is used in many industries, including construction, agriculture, material handling, transportation, textiles, pulp and paper, food and beverage, mining and marine. The anti-dumping petition doesn't include medical-grade UHMWPE.
Celanese officials said that under European law, a domestic industry can petition the government to initiate an anti-dumping investigation into the pricing of an imported product to determine whether it is sold at less than fair value. Additional duties can be imposed if the European Commission determines that imported goods are "dumped" and further determines that the domestic industry is materially injured or threatened with such injury by reason of subject imports.
Celanese ranks as the world's largest maker of acetal resins. The firm employs around 7,700 worldwide and posted sales of $6.3 billion in 2019.