US slaps up to 123% tariff on Indian solar panels amid BRICS friction talk

India's growing global influence and the activities of the BRICS grouping are being widely discussed, and that discussion is now said to be reaching the United States. It is being suggested that unease over this has led the US to deal a big blow to Indian industry, with US President Donald Trump's discomfort at India's rising global profile said to be visible.

The US has decided to impose heavy tariffs on solar cells and solar panels imported from India, Indonesia and Laos, a move seen as reflecting this unease. The US Commerce Department has accused producers in these countries of dumping cheap goods and wrongly benefiting from government subsidies.

The US Commerce Department has imposed a 123.04 percent anti-dumping duty on Indian solar producers. Indian companies also face a 126.09 percent countervailing duty. The anti-dumping duty for Indonesian producers has been set at 94.36 percent, while for Laos it is 65.43 percent. On countervailing duties, Indonesia faces rates ranging from 73.2 percent to 173.7 percent, and Laos faces rates ranging from 82.03 percent to 153.67 percent.

The trade investigation was launched based on a complaint by the Alliance for American Solar Manufacturing and Trade, whose members include major US solar companies such as First Solar, Hanwha Q Cells and Mission Solar Energy. The alliance says its aim is to ensure fair competition for American solar producers. According to the body, these decisions are important steps toward enforcing US trade laws and protecting the country's solar industry and its workers.

The US International Trade Commission, or USITC, will now deliver its final ruling on the matter on October 14. The commission will determine whether imports of solar products from India, Indonesia and Laos have caused or threaten to cause injury to domestic US producers. If the commission finds that the imports have caused injury, the Commerce Department could issue final duty orders in November.

The trade dispute between the US and China over solar energy is not new and has been running for years. The US first imposed anti-dumping and anti-subsidy duties on Chinese solar products in 2012, after which several Chinese companies began shifting production from China to other Asian countries. The latest decision to impose heavy duties on solar imports from India, Indonesia and Laos could increase pressure on producers in these countries seeking to do business in the American market.