Trade Cases
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Trump Walks Back Threat of Steel Tariffs on Brazil
Written by Sandy Williams
December 22, 2019
President Trump is walking back his decision to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from Brazil. After accusing Brazil and Argentina earlier this month of currency manipulation that is harming U.S. farmers, and threatening immediate tariffs in retaliation, Trump now says he will not follow through on his threat.
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro said Trump assured him in a phone call on Friday that Brazil’s aluminum and steel will not be overtaxed. Bolsonaro said the 15-minute call was cordial and respectful.
In a live Facebook announcement after the call, Bolsonaro said, “I was pleased to receive a call from President Trump, a 15-minute conversation. I understood what he wanted and intended to do and gave my arguments to him. He became convinced of my arguments and decided to tell us all that our steel and aluminum will not be overcharged. That way our policy remains the best possible.”
Trump confirmed on Twitter that he had a “great call” with the Brazilian president and discussed “many subjects including trade.”
The surprise announcement by Trump on Dec. 2 shook financial markets causing the Dow Jones to plummet 326 points as investors worried that a new trade war was about to begin. Brazil and Argentina were exempted from Section 232 tariffs after a quota deal was made with the countries in May 2018.
No official order was ever issued following Trump’s December threat and it is unclear whether the steel and aluminum tariffs will potentially be imposed on Argentina.
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Sandy Williams
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Leibowitz: The consequences of a new barrage of trade cases on coated steel
Domestic steel producers and the United Steelworkers (USW) union filed a barrage of trade cases last week. This is hardly news. Ever since the Commerce Department ruled that Vietnam is still treated as a nonmarket economy (NME) for antidumping purposes, many in the business expected new cases on the product that Vietnam excels at—“corrosion-resistant steel.” Nor is it a surprise that these cases roped in nine countries in addition to Vietnam: Australia, Brazil, Canada, Mexico, the Netherlands, South Africa, Taiwan, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates. All these countries rank in the top ten exporters of corrosion-resistant steel to the United States. These petitions are a broadside against coated flat-rolled steel imports.
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Coated trade case alleges hefty dumping margins
Domestic mills have alleged substantial dumping margins in the trade case targeting imports of corrosion-resistant steel.
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US mills file sprawling trade case against coated imports from 10 nations
US mills have filed or soon will file a sprawling trade petition against imports of coated flat-rolled steel from 10 countries. The petition seeks anti-dumping margins against Canada, Mexico, Brazil, the Netherlands, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Vietnam, Taiwan, Australia, and South Africa. It also seeks countervailing duty margins against Canada, Mexico, Brazil, and Vietnam. That’s according documents dated Sept. 5 and addressed to Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and International Trade Commission (ITC) Secretary Lisa Barton.
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Steel Summit 2024: Trade issues abound ahead of election
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US senators urge reduction to S. Korean OCTG quota
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