Trade Cases

Steel Caucus Urges Action on Mexican Imports

May 11, 2023

The Congressional Steel Caucus (CSC) has urged the US Department of Commerce and the US Trade Representative to take action to address what it calls a “surge of Mexican steel imports” into the US.

balance

The CSC claims the imports are in violation of the US and Mexican 2019 Joint Statement on Section 232 Duties on Steel and Aluminum, according to a letter addressed to Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and USTR Katherine Tai on Wednesday.

The US lifted 25% Section 232 duties on Mexican steel imports in May 2019, ahead of the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) going into effect in 2020. 

“Over the past several months, members of the domestic steel industry and the United Steelworkers have brought to our attention the economic harm that this breach has caused on workers and our ability for steel to support our national economy and our national security,” the letter said.

The CSC said that total steel imports from Mexico rose by ~72% in 2022, with increases across major product lines, including rebar, hot-rolled, galvanized sheet, carbon and galvanized wire, wire rod, pipe and tube, steel conduit, semi-finished, and other products.

As an example, the letter claims that Mexican rebar imports were more than 3,000% greater by volume in 2022 than their 2015-2017 annual average.

“Additionally, the Mexican steel industry appears to be taking advantage of its status under the US-Mexico agreement to export to our nation steel that was produced in countries that remain subject to Section 232 measures,” the letter said.

The CSC stated that reports and data from the US Steel Import Monitoring and Analysis System show that significant volumes of steel melted and poured in countries such as Brazil, South Korea—and even Russia—have entered through Mexico to the US, duty free.

“The whole point of the agreement was to prevent the US from being a dumping ground for Mexican and global overcapacity that harms our producers, workers, and communities,” the letter said.

Finally, the letter states that “the Mexican refusal to honor the agreement has weakened the domestic industry, with production and capacity utilization down significantly this year.”

“Therefore, we urge you and the Biden administration to immediately begin consultations under the 2019 Agreement to address this surge of Mexican steel,” the CSC said. “If the Mexican government refuses to take swift action to remedy this matter, we strongly encourage the administration to consider other mechanisms to ensure compliance.”

The CSC is a bipartisan group that includes over 100 members of Congress from steel-producing communities.

In February, 13 US senators signed a letter to USTR and Commerce urging action on Mexican steel imports. 

By Ethan Bernard, ethan@steelmarketupdate.com

Latest in Trade Cases

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.

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.

Steel Summit 2024: Trade issues abound ahead of election

Trade is always front and center in an election year. And 2024 is no different. There is no shortage of issues, with questions like the sale of U.S. Steel to Japan’s Nippon Steel, potential cracks in the USMCA, and Chinese overcapacity dominating the headlines. But how do you distinguish between issues that might just last until November, and what are the crucial questions that could affect your business for years to come?