KUALA LUMPUR: The Countervailing and Anti-Dumping Duties (Amendment) Bill 2025, aimed at protecting local industries from unfair trade practices and ensuring the competitiveness of local products, was tabled for first reading at the Dewan Rakyat.
The bill was tabled by Investment, Trade and Industry Ministry Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz on Wednesday (July 30).
The bill contains 21 clauses that are aimed at amending the Countervailing and Anti-Dumping Duties Act 1993 (Act 504).
The amendment seeks to enhance the legal framework and improve enforcement effectiveness in preventing unfair trade practices in the context of international trade under the World trade Organisation (WTO).
According to the bill, Clause 3 proposes an amendment on Section 9(1) of the Act regarding the investigation period to align with Article 17.1 of the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures, as Malaysia is a member country under the WTO.
Among the other amendments, Clause 4 proposes replacing Section 12(1) of the Act, which allows the government to suspend any investigation if it receives a commitment from exporting members agreeing to eliminate or limit subsidies or agreeing to revise prices.
Clause 5 aims to amend Section 12A to provide a countervailing duty imposed under Act 504 shall not exceed five years, either from the date of imposition or from the date of the most recent expiry interview.
In addition, Clause 10 aims to amend Section 27(1), which will allow the government to suspend any investigation if it accepts the undertaking from any exporter to revise its prices or to cease imports into Malaysia at dumped prices.
Clause 11 seeks to amend Section 27A, which stated that an anti-dumping duty shall not exceed five years, either from the date of imposition or from the date of the most recent expiry review.
According to an explainer on the Investment, Trade and Industry Ministry’s website, it said that anti-dumping measures refers to measures taken to offset the injury caused by dumping.
Dumping occurs when a company exports a product to a foreign market at a price lower than the price it normally charges in its domestic markets, it said.
On the other hand, the ministry said countervailing measures are imposed to counteract the effects of unfair subsidies provided by a foreign government to its exporters.
The last time Act 504 was amended was on Dec 1, 1999.
