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TRADE WARS
Sinopec, Japan's Mitsui to pump millions in Shanghai plants

China imposes duties on chemical from US, EU, SKorea
China on Monday imposed anti-dumping duties of as much as 35 percent on a chemical from the United States, in the latest tit-for-tat trade measure ahead of a visit by US President Barack Obama. The tariffs on adipic acid, which will also be imposed on imports from the European Union and South Korea, will be effective for five years at a rate from five percent to 35.4 percent, the commerce ministry said in a statement. "Investigation authorities concluded that the products made in countries and regions like the US and EU are being dumped (in China), causing substantial damages to the domestic adipic acid sector," said the statement posted on its website.

Adipic acid is mainly used to make nylon but is also a pharmaceutical ingredient and can be used to produce food flavouring. Trade tensions between China and the United States have intensified in recent weeks, with both sides taking action against the other's imports. Obama, who is due in China from November 15-18 for his first visit since taking office, ignited the first major trade spat of his presidency in September after he imposed punitive duties on Chinese-made tyres. An angry Beijing lodged a complaint at the World Trade Organization and retaliated by launching a probe into possible unfair trade practices involving imports of US car products and chicken meat. Last month, the United States launched a probe on whether to slap almost 100 percent tariffs on steel pipes imported from China.

In a sign of progress, China pledged at high-level talks with US officials in eastern Hangzhou last week to lift restrictions on US pork imports and Washington said it would ease curbs on Chinese poultry imports. China also promised to improve copyright protections and ease restrictions on foreign involvement in its rapidly growing wind power sector, but said it was investigating possible dumping by US automakers.

by Staff Writers
 Beijing (AFP) Nov 2, 2009
 China's Sinopec, Asia's largest oil refiner, said Monday that it would team up with Japan's Mitsui Chemicals to invest a combined 60 billion yen (732 million dollars) to build two plants in Shanghai.

The factories will produce phenol and ethylene propylene terpolymer (EPT), which are used to make auto parts such as seal strip for car windows and rubber tubes, an executive with the Chinese firm, who declined to be named, told AFP.

"This is an intent of cooperation reached by the two parties," the executive said, adding that no contract had yet been signed.

The two companies plan to set up a 50-50 joint venture to build the phenol plant, which is expected to come onstream in the second quarter of 2013 with an annual capacity of producing 250,000 tonnes of the chemical, he said.

Output at the EPT plant is projected to be 75,000 tonnes a year, with operations to start in the fourth quarter of 2013, he added.

"We think they are to meet mainly domestic demand as the (Chinese) auto market is growing fast," the Sinopec executive said.

Forty-five percent of Japan's petrochemicals exports are sold to China, whose demand for the products has been growing at an annualized rate of six percent, according to a report by the Japanese business newspaper Nikkei.

Japan's major chemicals companies are linking up with petrochemicals giants in China and the Middle East as domestic demand has slumped, it said.

China became the world's largest car market in January when sales here outstripped those in the United States for the first time. Auto output in the country is expected to reach 12 million for all of 2009.

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