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Malaysian government urged not to extend anti-dumping duties on imports of newsprint from Canada and others

The Malaysian Star newspaper has reported that the Malaysian Newsprint Publishers Association (MNPA) is appealing to the government not to extend the anti-dumping duties on imports of newsprint paper.

The Malaysian Star newspaper has reported that the Malaysian Newsprint Publishers Association (MNPA) is appealing to the government not to extend the anti-dumping duties on imports of newsprint paper.

A statement from MNPA urged the government to allow the anti-dumping duties to expire as scheduled, saying: “The anti-dumping duties have been imposed for the last 10 years on imports of newsprint in rolls from Canada, Indonesia, South Korea, the Philippines and the United States. Newsprint is a major cost component for the newspaper business.”

The Association said that the necessary mechanisms to ensure survival of Malaysian newsprint manufacturers are already in place so there is no need to extend the anti- dumping duties. Currently, the government provides an incentive in the form of an import duty waiver on newsprint if MNPA members procure 50% of their newsprint locally.

MNPA said the livelihood of the Malaysian newspaper sector as a whole depends on the survival of the newspaper industry and its ability to control cost. “The newspaper industry employs about 12,000 workers, about 10,000 newspaper vendors and agents, as well as 5,000 suppliers and transporters,” said the MNPA.