Sources : Liputan6.com | 08 Oktober 2024

The government is expected to protect the domestic steel industry which is now competing with a flood of imported steel from China. Protection so that the local steel industry does not suffer the same fate as the textile industry.

Researchers from The Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (Indef) expressed concern that the current flood of imported steel from China could destroy the domestic steel industry.

“Don’t let our steel industry end up suffering the same fate as the textile industry today. Where it is indeed very difficult to produce, because it has been hit by a fairly large import onslaught,” said Head of the Center for Industry, Trade and Investment at Indef Andry Satrio Nugroho as reported by Antara, in Jakarta, Tuesday (8/10/2024).

He revealed that the condition of China’s domestic steel industry is declining due to the impact of the collapse in domestic demand. This condition opens up opportunities for the country to expand exports to various countries, including Indonesia at very cheap prices (dumping).

“Because of oversupply, of course they will direct or export their production abroad. “One of the markets that is quite potential to be penetrated is Indonesia,” he explained.

Therefore, according to him, government protection for domestic steel is very much needed, otherwise, the steel industry in this country could go bankrupt due to the onslaught of imported steel.

Other countries, he said, have also taken protective measures to protect the domestic steel industry such as the United States, the European Union, and Canada which have implemented Antidumping Import Duty (BMAD) and high tariffs on Chinese steel products.

“There are many trade remedies instruments provided in various countries. Meanwhile, Indonesia still has very little protection,” he said again.

According to him, the Indonesian government needs to do the same thing, such as in the form of safeguards or in the form of imposing Antidumping Import Duty (BMAD).

“And also, we can push for other certifications,” said Andry via telephone.

Andry reminded that if the flood of imported steel is allowed to continue, it will not only cause the domestic steel industry to go bankrupt and threaten mass layoffs, but other business sectors will also be affected, such as steel distributors and other related industries.

Government protection of the steel industry, he said again, will have a positive impact on the investment climate. If the industry can grow, it is hoped that future economic growth can also increase.

“With domestic market protection, production utilization can increase. This can provide enthusiasm for investors to enter. Investors will feel that in addition to the domestic market being quite large, the competition is also quite good. So that’s what we expect from the new government,” he said.

President Director of PT Gunung Raja Paksi (GRP) Fedaus added that the domestic steel industry hopes for protection from the government, especially since this industry is the backbone of development.

“The government must be really serious about protecting it with several implementations of trade remidies,” he said.

He considered the sunset review/extension process for anti-dumping to be very long, so it is feared that the steel industry will experience the same destruction as the textile industry.