Japan is imposing anti-dumping duties on imports of stainless steel from China and Taiwan

The Japanese Government has announced plans to impose anti-dumping duties on imports of nickel-containing cold-rolled stainless steel from China and Taiwan. The reason for this decision was a policy of unfair pricing, which has caused significant damage to Japanese manufacturers. The new restrictions could come into force as early as next month, according to BigMint.

The authorities have established that Chinese and Taiwanese stainless steel coils, sheets and strips were being sold on the Japanese market at artificially low prices. Consequently, duties on products from the PRC will be up to 45 per cent, and for goods from Taiwan – up to 21 per cent.

The official investigation was launched in July 2025 following a joint complaint by leading Japanese steel companies, including Nippon Steel, Nippon Yakin Kogyo, Nasu Steel Strip and Nippon Kinzoku.

The interim report revealed the following dumping margins for specific manufacturers:

1. For Chinese companies (overall margin: 33.29–45.32 per cent): Taiyuan Iron & Steel (TISCO) and Yongjin — 33.29 per cent; Zhangjiagang POSCO Stainless Steel (PZSS) — 45.32 per cent.
2. For Taiwanese companies (overall margin: 3.86–20.71 per cent): Yusco – 3.86 per cent, Walsin Lihwa – 20.71 per cent.

China and Taiwan occupy a significant share of Japan’s steel import market. China accounts for around 20 per cent of total imports, whilst Taiwan accounts for approximately 17 per cent. South Korea remains the main exporter of steel products to the Japanese market, controlling almost 62 per cent of imports.

Dumping by Chinese and Taiwanese suppliers has put local producers in a difficult position. Low import prices were used as a benchmark during market negotiations, which prevented Japanese mills from raising the prices of their own products and forced them to make concessions to buyers.

Import pressure led to a decline in sales volumes and a fall in the capacity utilisation rate of local enterprises. Whilst the production utilisation index stood at 100 points in 2022, it fell to 76 in 2023. Despite a slight recovery to 85 points in 2024, domestic steel producers continue to face serious financial pressure.

As reported by the GMK Centre, Japan recently launched an anti-dumping investigation into imports of basic steel products from China, South Korea and Taiwan.  The investigation will cover imports of hot-rolled and cold-rolled coils, strips and sheet steel. It was initiated by leading Japanese steel producers, including Nippon Steel and JFE Steel. It is expected to last a year.