The Chinese government yesterday charged chemical firms from the United States and Europe of dumping polycaprolactam or nylon 6 in the domestic markets.

In its preliminary ruling, the government said the companies involved in the case including BASF Corp and Honeywell Resins & Chemical LLC will have to pay a security deposit from today until a final decision is taken in this regard.

This is the second such ruling announced by China against imports from the US and Europe, following the growing trend of trade remedy investigations and measures being resorted to by developed nations against China.