The Philippine Plastics Industry Association (PPIA) has asked government to junk petitions to impose safeguard duties on imported resins saying this will create tariff distortion with finished goods.
The PPIA in a statement said influx of imports would threaten the viability of more than 834 local plastic manufacturers.
PPIA welcomed the decision of the Tariff Commission (TC) denying the petition of JG Summit Olefin Corp. (JGSOC) for safeguards on linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE) but the Department of Trade and Industry is yet to release its final report. Another petition for safeguard duties on high-density polyethylene (HDPE) is pending at the TC.
PPIA president Aaron Lao said if the raw materials are slapped with additional import duties, plastic packaging and finished products with zero duties from other Asean countries will flood the market.
Lao said government should then likewise increase the duties of imported plastic finished products using HDPE and LLDPE to ensure a level playing field.
Lao said 95 percent of the plastic manufacturers are small and medium enterprises and loss of business would result in massive unemployment in the downstream manufacturing.
Lao said the 30 percent safeguard duty would translate to an increase of 15 to 20 percent cost on locally produced outputs.
