Waaree Energies Shares Decline 4% Amidst US Imposition of Anti-Dumping Duties on Indian Solar Imports

US Commerce Department Imposes Anti-Dumping Duties on Solar Imports from India, Indonesia, and Laos

The US Commerce Department announced preliminary anti-dumping duties on solar cells and panels imported from India, Indonesia, and Laos, sparking a decline in shares of Waaree Energies and Vikram Solar. On April 24, Waaree Energies shares fell 4% while Vikram Solar shares declined by 2%.

The decision, which comes after a decade of tariffs imposed on solar imports from Asia, sided with domestic solar factory owners who claimed that companies operating in the three countries dumped cheap goods in the US market. According to a fact sheet posted on the Commerce Department's website, the agency calculated preliminary duty rates, known as dumping margins, of 123.04% for imports from India, 35.17% for imports from Indonesia, and 22.46% for imports from Laos.

The three nations accounted for $4.5 billion in US solar imports last year, approximately two-thirds of the total. The decision is a blow to producers in those nations who were supplying goods to the fast-growing US market. At 10:45 am on April 24, Waaree Energies shares were trading 4% lower at Rs 3,283.3 apiece while those of Vikram Solar were trading 2.2% lower at Rs 222.67 apiece.

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The Alliance for American Solar Manufacturing and Trade, which filed the petition, includes Tempe, Arizona-based First Solar, Qcells, the solar division of Korea's Hanwha, and private companies Talon PV and Mission Solar. The group has previously succeeded in winning tariffs on imports from countries in Southeast Asia, including Malaysia, Cambodia, Vietnam, and Thailand.

The Commerce Department will announce a final decision on or around July 13 for solar cells from India and Indonesia, and a decision for imports from Laos on or around September 9. The agency also announced preliminary countervailing duties on the three countries in February.