Final Thoughts
ITC Votes to Drop Antidumping Duties on Steel Plate from Brazil
Written by Ethan Bernard
January 12, 2023
The US International Trade Commission (ITC) voted to remove antidumping duties on imports of Brazilian steel plate.
The ITC on Monday, Jan. 10, ruled that imports of carbon and alloy steel cut-to-length plate from Brazil would not likely lead to continuation or recurrence of material injury within a reasonably foreseeable time. Brazil had been subject to antidumping duties of 74.52%.
However, the ITC said that the existing orders on imports of this product from Austria, Belgium, China, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, South Africa, South Korea, Taiwan, and Turkey would remain in place. The US is also keeping countervailing duties on plate from China and South Korea.
The lifting of anti-dumping duties on Brazilian plate follows the five-year “sunset” review process required by international trade law. Sunset reviews require US trade officials to decide whether duties should be extended or allowed to lapse (i.e., sunset).
Removing duties on Brazilian steel has become a trend. US trade officials have also decided to let duties expire on Brazilian hot-rolled and cold-rolled coil – something that has raised the ire of domestic mills. As in other recent cases involving Brazil, ITC commissioners voted unanimously to keep duties on imports from other countries. But it was a 3-2 vote on Brazil. ITC Chairman David Johanson voted against continuing duties on Brazil along with Commissioners Jason Kearns and Amy Karpel. Commissioners Rhonda Schmidtlein and Randolph Stayin voted to continue the duties. The sunsetting of duties on Brazil is notable because it could allow the country to become a more important supplier of sheet and plate to the US market, especially since Brazil does not face a Section 232 tariff of 25%. Brazil is instead limited by its Section 232 quota. Duties were imposed on plate from Brazil in 2017 following a wide-ranging trade petition. That petition was one of several filed against sheet and plate imports in 2015 and 2016 that altered the import landscape.
Case in point: Brazil shipped 124,702 metric tonnes of plate to the US in 2014, that figure had collapsed to 7,654 tonnes by 2016. Brazil shipped no plate to the US from 2017 to 2021, and only 17.2 tonnes in 2022, according to Commerce Department figures.
By Ethan Bernard, Ethan@SteelMarketUpdate.com

Ethan Bernard
Read more from Ethan BernardLatest in Final Thoughts

Final Thoughts
Despite some scary headlines lately (especially about Trump potentially firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell) this is not October 2008 (financial crisis) or March 2020 (onset of the pandemic). But it sure seems like we’ve taken a relatively strong economy and poured a thick sauce of uncertainty over it.

Final Thoughts
I put some of our survey data through ChatGpt, with interesting results.

Final Thoughts
Nearly 50% of respondents to our latest survey thought hot-rolled coil prices have already peaked. And where will those prices be two months from now? Responses were decidedly split on that question.

Final Thoughts
A modest week-to-week change in HR price understates a huge swing in expectations.

Final Thoughts
What happens when ChatGPT meets SMU's Market Chatter? No, this is not an idea for the latest Hollywood blockbuster. Then again, with what Hollywood is putting out these days, Chatter Meets Chat might just turn out to be a hit. Rather, it’s that old idea of putting theory into practice. Recently, I conducted an interview with Doug Schrock, managing principal of AI at public accounting and consulting firm Crowe. He gave some tips on how to implement AI into your business.