Trade Cases
Commerce Upholds Duties on Sheet Imports from Vietnam
Written by Tim Triplett
December 17, 2019
Affirming that steel imports from Vietnam have been circumventing U.S. antidumping and countervailing duties, the Department of Commerce on Monday upheld its preliminary AD/CVD rates on imports of galvanized and cold rolled sheet from Vietnam manufactured with hot- or cold-rolled substrate from Korea and Taiwan.
Steel products produced in Korea and Taiwan, shipped to Vietnam for minor processing, and then exported to the United States as corrosion-resistant steel products (CORE) and cold-rolled steel (CRS) circumvent existing AD/CVD orders on Korea and Taiwan, Commerce found. As a result, U.S. Customs and Border Protection will continue to collect AD and CVD cash deposits as high as 456.23 percent, depending on the type and origin of the steel. The duties are retroactive to imports dating back to Aug. 2, 2018, when Commerce initiated the circumvention inquiries.
U.S. law provides that Commerce may find circumvention of AD/CVD orders when merchandise subject to an existing order is completed or assembled in a third country prior to importation into the United States. Over the past seven years, shipments of CORE from Vietnam to the United States increased from $22 million to $933 million, an increase of 4,076 percent. Additionally, shipments of CRS from Vietnam to the United States increased from $49 million to $498 million, an increase of 922 percent.
Domestic sheet producers—including AK Steel, ArcelorMittal USA, California Steel Industries, Nucor, Steel Dynamics and U.S. Steel—filed a complaint in June 2018 alleging transshipment of hot and cold rolled sheet from Korea and Taiwan through Vietnam into the U.S.
Tim Triplett
Read more from Tim TriplettLatest in Trade Cases
SMU Survey: Less support seen for Trump tariff policies
Meanwhile, an increasing number think it's too early to say whether the penalties are going to bring more manufacturing to the US.
CRU: USW seeks exclusion for Canada from Trump’s tariffs
The union is also urging stronger enforcement against countries such as China which break trade rules, and a coordinated Canada-US strategy to protect union jobs across the North America
Price on trade: A lot happened last week – and it wasn’t all about tariffs
Should foreign investment be allowed to reshape the American steel Industry? Not to be lost in the recent on-again-off-again tariff frenzy, Nippon Steel’s proposed takeover of U.S. Steel has also found itself in President Trump’s crosshairs when it comes to trade and industrial policy. Nippon Steel initially announced its nearly $15-billion bid for U.S. Steel […]
Trump signs executive order aimed at making US shipbuilding ‘great again’
President Trump on Wednesday signed an executive order meant to breathe new life into American shipbuilding and curb Chinese dominance in the sector.
Trump still against selling USS to Japanese firm: Report
Despite ordering a new review of Nippon Steel’s bid for U.S. Steel, President Trump said he is still against selling USS to a Japanese company, according to media reports.