The Philippine Iron and Steel Institute (PISI) has urged the Fair Trade Group of the Department of Trade and Industry to continue its market enforcement activities and, as necessary, subject violators to the maximum penalties allowed by law.
The group submitted on April 7, 2025 to Atty. Agaton O. Uvero, assistant DTI Assistant Secretary for Fair Trade Group, the result of their random market test buy activities for 2024-2025.
The test results showed steel products from various samples of steel bars from different manufacturers that failed the test conducted at the Bureau of Product Standards testing laboratory in Dasmarinas, Cavite. The same were taken from several stores in the country. PISI specifically identified in the letter’s attachments, the manufacturers and names of stores that sell the supposedly substandard products.
The summary covers random market test by of steel rebar, covered under PNS 49, and steel angle bars under PNS 657. The purchased samples were tested at DTI accredited testing facilities to ensure impartial results, PISI said.
“The continued high instances of non-conformity of samples purchased leads us to conclude that there are larger quantitied of substandard products being sold in the market today. We must learn from the recent tragedy that has hit our ASEAN neighbors and take the necessary steps to guarantee no such disaster occurs in our country,” PISI president Ronaldo C. Magsajo stated in the letter.
