US Sets High Dumping Margins on OCTG from Three Countries

Critical circumstances were found to exist in the cases against Argentina and Mexico but not in the Russian case. Critical circumstances allow for duties to be applied retroactively for 90 days before the imposition of the provisional measures, which began on May 11. The period of investigation for these cases is October 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021.

In the Argentinian case, Commerce set preliminary weighted-average dumping margins of 76.43% for Siderca SAIC and the same margin for all other Argentinian companies.

In the case against Mexico, a 69.56% preliminary dumping margin was set on imports from Tubos de Acero de Mexico (TAMSA), and the same rate was applied to all-other Mexican producers and exporters.

Preliminary margins in the Russian case were set at 11.35% for JSC Vyksa Steel Works, 121.11% for a handful of pipe plants, and 70.49% for the all-others rate.

Commerce has decided to postpone making its final determinations in these cases, setting a new deadline of September 23.

During the one-year period of review, OCTG imports from Argentina were 119,060 net tons, from Mexico 264,809 tons, and from Russia 100,610 tons, according to data from the US International Trade Commission. In the first three months of this year, imports reached 44,533 tons from Argentina, 85,130 tons from Mexico, and 61,712 tons from Russia. The subject merchandise may also enter under additional HTSUS codes, so actual figures may be higher.

In the first three months of 2022, the largest foreign suppliers of OCTG to the US in descending order were South Korea, Mexico, Russia, Argentina, Austria, Taiwan, Canada, Ukraine, and Brazil. According to licensing data, no product was imported from Russia or Ukraine during all of April and or the beginning of May.

A countervailing duty case is also currently pending on allegedly subsidized OCTG imports from Russia and South Korea. Both the countervailing and antidumping cases include both seamless and welded product.

The OCTG market in the US, which is a major consumer of flat-rolled steel and plate, has been undersupplied now for some time, plagued by high prices and lead times extended out for several quarters. The high margins found in these trade cases could slow imports from these countries, or increase prices further for imported product. Either way, elevated OCTG prices are expected to continue in the US for the foreseeable future.

By Laura Miller, Laura@SteelMarketUpdate.com