South Korean corrugated cardboard sheet makers such as Asia Paper Manufacturing Co. have decided to file an anti-dumping complaint against Japanese rivals Daio Paper Corp. and Oji Paper Co. in the first such case for Korean paper companies, according to paper industry sources on Sunday.
Tailim Paper Co. and Korea Paper Mfg. Co. are likely to join Asia Paper to lodge a petition against the Japanese companies with the Korea Trade Commission under the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy by no later than early 2025.
“Japanese companies have been dumping their surplus on to our country at cheap prices, causing price distortions and serious damage on us,” said one of the sources.
Their aggressive penetration into South Korea threatens the manufacturers of kraft liner board (KLB), a type of paperboard used for packaging of TVs, refrigerators and washing machines. Thanks to their strength and durability, KLB is suitable for big boxes.
But Japanese companies have been elbowing out Korean peers with low-end liner boards over the past two to three years to make up for slow demand in China.
Their products weigh 160 grams per square meter and made 100% from recycled paper.
In comparison, KLB produced by Korean companies weighs 175 grams per one square meter and virgin softwood pulp make up about 20% of their ingredients, thus regarded as high-end products.
Korean paper makers argue that Japanese corrugated sheets are dumped at cheaper prices in Korea than in Japan.
In Japan, Daio and Oji sells corrugated fiberboard made 100% from recycled paper at $500 per one ton, but in South Korea, they are priced around $420-$450.
In comparison, Asia Paper’s corrugated fiberboard sells at around $500 or per one ton.
Further, their products are hard to distinguish in appearance since they come in almost the same color from a few years ago.
Japanese corrugated liner board is mainly used to make ramen boxes and delivery boxes. But Korean packaging paper makers are now using them for big packaging boxes and supply them to home electronics companies such as Samsung Electronics Co. and LG Electronics Inc.
Imports of Japanese corrugated fiberboard have increased significantly.
According to the Korea Customs Service, imports of Japanese corrugated fiberboard has jumped to 62,214 tons this year as of October and are forecast to reach 74,657 tons for all of this year. That compared with 56,560 tons in 2023.
Sales of Korean corrugated fiberboard stood at 5.4 million tons in 2023, after peaking at 5.9 million tons in 2021.
By Hyung-Chang Choi
calling@hankyung.com
Yeonhee Kim edited this article.
