India exported ceramic tiles worth Rs. 15,000 crore in 2023-24, with the US market accounting for a substantial Rs. 1,600 crore of these exports, according to an official at the Morbi Ceramic Association. The ceramic industry, with an annual turnover of Rs. 60,000 crore, employs over 5 lakh people directly and indirectly, ranking second globally in both tile production and consumption.

If implemented, the proposed US anti-dumping duty would affect the competitiveness of Indian tiles from the US, Indian ceramic manufacturers said.

The Coalition for Fair Trade in Ceramic Tile, which represents more than 90% of US tile production, asked the federal government on April 10 to impose significant tariffs on ceramic tile imports from India to address what it described as unfairly low-priced imports that hurt domestic manufacturers. The anti-dumping petition from the industry proposes tariffs ranging from 408% to 828%.

Haresh Bopaliya, president of the Morbi Ceramic Tiles Association, said: “It would set a wrong precedent. We have presented our side to the US government through their online portal. The US-based ceramic tile manufacturers have submitted a memorandum for imposing an anti-dumping duty of up to 800% on Indian ceramic tiles. They complain about the lower prices of imported tiles. We can afford anti-dumping duty up to 10%”.

Bopaliya added that the situation has been further compounded by recent challenges faced by the industry which have led to a decline in production by 10-15% over the last few months.

Despite these challenges, the industry is optimistic about the future, with 35-40 new factories coming up in the last eight months. However, the looming threat of the anti-dumping duty has cast a shadow over these expansion plans, said a ceramic tile manufacturer.