Four major US steel producers—ArcelorMittal USA, Nucor Corporation, AK Steel Corporation and United States Steel Corporation—announced today they are filing petitions charging that unfairly traded imports of corrosion-resistant carbon steel and cold-rolled carbon steel from China are circumventing the antidumping and countervailing duty orders recently imposed by the US Department of Commerce.
The US producers contend that immediately after the DOC imposed provisional duties on these imports, Chinese producers began to divert merchandise through Vietnam for completion prior to exporting the product to the United States in an attempt to evade the duties. Imports from China of corrosion-resistant and cold-rolled steel declined dramatically in response to Commerce's imposition of duties, while imports from Vietnam surged as the domestic steel producers believe Chinese steel producers attempted to circumvent these orders by transshipping steel products through Vietnam for minor finishing operations.
Antidumping and countervailing orders were imposed in July 2016 against imports of corrosion-resistant steel from China. Earlier this week, antidumping and countervailing orders were imposed against imports of cold-rolled steel from China. These orders reflected findings by the DOC that imports of corrosion-resistant steel and cold-rolled steel from China are being dumped into the US market at margins of 199.43 percent and 265.79 percent, respectively, and are receiving unfair government subsidies from China ranging from 39.05 percent to 256.44 percent.
The US International Trade Commission further found that these imports, along with imports from other countries, are causing material injury to the domestic industries producing these products. The trade actions were filed in response to large and increasing volumes of low-priced imports of corrosion-resistant steel and cold-rolled steel that have caused serious harm to US producers and their workers in recent years.
The domestic producers are requesting that the Department initiate circumvention inquiries into these practices and that it simultaneously issue an affirmative preliminary determination to suspend liquidation of imports of corrosion-resistant steel and cold-rolled steel imported from Vietnam.
The DOC will determine within 45 days whether to initiate the request for a circumvention ruling and whether to issue a simultaneous preliminary determination that leads to the suspension of liquidation of imports of these products. The entire proceeding must be completed within 300 days.