Trade Cases
Wheatland Tube Files Challenge Against China Using the ENFORCE Act
Written by Sandy Williams
September 15, 2016
Wheatland Tube, a division of Zekelman Industries, has filed one of the first allegations of duty evasion under the new ENFORCE Act. The allegation was filed Wednesday with the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) charging duty evasion by Chinese imports of circular welded steel pipe. The pipe in question is used in solar projects which are receiving Federal tax breaks, said Wheatland Tube.
“We uncovered evidence of the evasion of massive antidumping and countervailing duties on imports from China used in solar panel installations,” said Barry Zekelman, Chairman and CEO of Zekelman Industries. “As the largest pipe and tube producer in North America, we want to ensure that the laws designed to create a level playing field for our industry and our workers are not undermined by duty evasion practices.”
AD/CVD duties were imposed on imports of circular welded pipe from China in 2008 and currently have dumping margins of 69.30 to 85.55 percent and subsidy rates of 616.83 percent.
Duty evasions are one of the new features of the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015 (implemented in August 2016). The ENFORCE Act allows domestic producers to bring fraud, circumvention and evasion practices directly to the CBP.
Customs and Border Protection is required to initiate an investigation within 30 days of receiving a petition and issue a preliminary determination in 90 days. The final determination must be made within a year (300 days). Violators found to have evaded AD/CVD orders will be subject to increased duties, potentially from the date of the initiation of the CBP investigation. CBP is held accountable for its determinations by the Court of International Trade.
“With the demand for energy tubulars down, structural pipe used for solar installations is a growing area of increasing demand. We hate to see that demand, and the opportunities it provides for our industry, to be overtaken by unfairly traded pipe from China,” said David Seeger, President of Zekelman Industries.
Sandy Williams
Read more from Sandy WilliamsLatest in Trade Cases
Steel imports slip 10% from August to September
September marked the lowest month for steel imports so far this year, according to preliminary Census data released by the Commerce Department.
Price on trade: Japan could help fund Nippon Steel’s acquisition of U.S. Steel
Earlier this month, Nippon Steel announced that it is applying for subsidies under the Japanese government’s Green Transformation Promotion Act to expand the company’s electric furnace steelmaking capabilities and to convert from blast furnace to electric furnace operations. As we have said before, transitioning from blast furnace- to electric furnace-based steelmaking is a good thing […]
CRU: What will the US elections mean for economic policy?
In this Insight piece, CRU economists explore the possible economic effects of Trump's and Harris' agendas.
Commerce adjusts duties on large OD welded P&T
The US Department of Commerce is conducting annual administrative reviews of antidumping and countervailing duty (AD/CVD) orders on certain imports of steel pipe and tube.
Canada announces remission process for Chinese steel tariffs
The Canadian government announced a remission process for businesses for recently announced tariffs on Chinese steel and aluminum products and electric vehicles .