SA slaps Chinese, Thai washing machine exporters with anti-dumping duties of up to 67%

South Africa is imposing new anti‑dumping duties on certain top loader washing machines imported from China and Thailand.

The International Trade Administration Commission of South Africa (ITAC) made the request to the Commissioner of the South African Revenue Service (SARS) following an application from Defy Appliances.

The company alleged that fully automatic top loaders, of a dry linen capacity exceeding 10 kg but less than 17 kg, were being imported into the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) at dumped prices.

Defy - the largest manufacturer and distributor of major domestic appliances in Southern Africa, is the only producer of this type of washing machine in SACU.

Electronics brand Beko lists on its website that a machine with 6kg–8kg capacity is ideal for singles or couples, 9kg–10kg perfect for medium-sized families, and 11kg and above "built for bigger households with extensive laundry needs".

After considering comments and responses from interested parties, the Commission made a final determination that there was sufficient information to indicate that dumping is indeed taking place and that the SACU industry was experiencing material injury as a result.

After they requested SARS to impose definitive anti-dumping duties on these imports from China and Thailand, these were implemented on 23 April 2026

As ITAC Chief Commissioner Ayabonga Cawe explains, the evidence at their disposal showed that the machines were being landed and sold in the South African market at a price below their comparable price in the countries of origin.

The investigation also had to consider whether the SACU industry was experiencing material injury as a result.

"We had to consider the particular forms of material injury that the domestic industry would be facing, whether this is a decline in sales, a decline in profitability, a piling up of inventory going unsold, and many other measures.

The dumping duties imposed for the implicated companies that cooperated with ITAC were calculated anywhere from 8-9.39%.

Those that did not provide their cooperation face duties from 13.42-67.11%.

Scroll up the audio player to listen to the interview, and click here to find more information on the brands involved in dumping and the ruling