Trade Cases
Section 201 Petition Filed by USW on Imports of Aluminum
Written by Sandy Williams
April 19, 2016
The United Steelworkers filed a petition this week under Section 201 of U.S. trade law to attempt stem imports of primary unwrought aluminum. We are reporting on this because a number of companies/organizations having begun calling for the use of Section 201 to help stem unwanted steel imports (see article in tonight’s newsletter written by Lewis Leibowitz which addresses the use of Section 201 and Section 232 trade remedies).
The USW claims the volume of imported aluminum has seriously injured the American industry and threatens additional job and capacity losses. The USW petition claims the circumstance is critical which requires the ITC to make a preliminary decision within 60 days (June 17).
Under Section 201 the president can impose import restrictions through tariffs or quotas for up to five years. The president will have 30 days (July 18) following an affirmative ruling by the ITC in which to decide on provisional relief.
“A flood of foreign imports and failed trade policies have decimated American manufacturing,” said USW International President Leo W. Gerard. “Aluminum is vital to our national and economic security, and this case will help us retain and begin to rebuild domestic production of primary unwrought aluminum, which has reached critically low levels as a result of flooding imports. By the end of June, the industry will be operating at only 25 percent of 2011 production levels, and the total number of laid off workers will reach 6,500.
“In states all across the country, America’s aluminum producers have closed, idled or are at risk,” said Gerard. “Over just five years, we’ve seen the number of smelters plummet. In 2011 there were 14 smelters in the United States. Today there are only eight, of which only five are currently operating and one is expected to be idled at the end of June. Two of the five now operating are at 50 percent or less of capacity.”
“We refuse to watch another domestic manufacturing sector suffer from failed trade policies,” Gerard added. “This is a vital product for our aircraft and weapon systems. It’s used in construction, manufacturing and in electrical transmission.”
The petition will address imports from around the world but the primary sources currently flooding the U.S. originate in Canada, the Middle East, Russia and Venzuela.
“The USW’s trade case is intended to provide needed relief,” said Tom Conway, USW International Vice President. “We are requesting four years of increased tariffs, with the tariffs capped at a price allowing domestic producers to effectively operate and, hopefully, restore production.
The petition also calls for negotiations with our trading partners, principally China, seeking that they dismantle their overproduction and restore balance in global supply and demand.”
Production of aluminum in China grew 650.8 percent from 2001 to 2014, while its capacity increased 723.5 percent to 35 million metric tons.
“While the U.S. and other global aluminum firms are restructuring and cutting back production to minimize financial losses, the Chinese government is stepping in to expand capacity and encourage exports, placing the entire U.S. aluminum smelting system at risk,” said Conway.
Sandy Williams
Read more from Sandy WilliamsLatest in Trade Cases
Nippon respects HR dumping decision, expects lower rate in next review
Nippon Steel says it respects the US Department of Commerce’s findings in administrative reviews despite the agency recently assigning the Japanese steelmaker a higher dumping margin.
CRU: Trump tariffs could stimulate steel demand
Now that the dust has settled from the US election, as have the immediate reactions in the equity, bond, and commodity markets, this is a prime opportunity to look at how a second Trump presidency might affect the US steel market.
Rebar import duties to continue for 5 more years
Import duties on rebar from a handful of countries will continue to be collected for at least another five years.
Leibowitz: Trump 2.0 signals Cold War 2.0 trade and China policies
China is one of the elephants in the room as the transition to Trump 2.0 continues. While the people and policies are still being formulated, it’s possible to detect a strategy for the new Trump administration. I think there are two imperative issues that the new administration needs to balance. The Trump strategy will, I believe, follow the following points. First, trade is one of the issues that got President Trump elected in 2016 and 2024—it nearly got him elected in 2020, save for the pandemic. If President Trump had won in 2020, I might be writing chronicles about the end of his eight years in the White House now instead of projecting what the next Trump administration would accomplish or break. Oh, well—that’s life. Trade will necessarily be a key feature of relations with China for the next four years.
Commerce says Nippon dumped steel in US in 2022-23
Commerce determined a significant dumping margin for hot-rolled steel imports from Japan's Nippon Steel.