— By Plasteurope.com staff — 

On 3 July, Turkey launched a review of the existing protective duties on PVC imports from Germany and the US. The investigation, initiated by Turkey’s sole polymer producer, Petkim (Aliağa; www.petkim.com.tr), must be concluded within one year. However, the deadline may be extended by six months. There is talk of scrapping the current punitive duties on PVC imports from Germany.

The anti-dumping measures on PVC have been in place since 2003. Originally, in addition to Germany and the US, Belgium, Italy, Israel, and Romania were also affected, as were Finland, the Netherlands, Hungary, and Greece.

The protective duties initially ranged from USD 25/t to USD 45/t (adjusted for inflation, this equates to approximately EUR 40/t to EUR 70/t at current rates), including insurance and freight. In 2015, the rates rose to 18.81% for US imports and 16.44% for imports from Germany. Since 2021, the duties for both countries have been set at a uniform rate of 7.93%.

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Material from the US, in particular, is likely to be flowing into Turkey since the European Commission imposed provisional anti-dumping duties on US imports in mid-2024, forcing US PVC producers to seek alternative markets. Even the trade agreement between the EU and the US, which has now come into force, does not lift these European punitive duties.

According to Plasteurope.com market analyst Vincent Breit, there are also “sporadic volumes flowing from Germany to Turkey”. However, given the higher costs in Germany, the volume is small. “At best, these exports can be seen as an outlet for surplus material,” says Breit.