A seminar to raise awareness of the scope and impact of customs import fraud and circumvention of antidumping (AD) and countervailing duty (CVD) orders in North America was conducted jointly on Wednesday, November 17 in Washington by six steel trade associations from Canada, Mexico and the United States. The seminar was held in conjunction with the regular fall meeting of the North American Steel Trade Committee (NASTC), a NAFTA-wide inter-governmental and industry group that promotes cooperation on steel trade and other policy issues of common concern to the three NAFTA nations.
The seminar was an educational event, structured to present facts and information to raise awareness of the scope of this problem, to examine the economic consequences for the NAFTA steel industry and governments, and to promote thought and dialogue on how to effectively address the problem. Topics included: an industry overview from the perspective of rules-based free and fair trade; the role of the three customs services in North America; the importance of enforcement in preventing fraud; current legislative and regulatory initiatives; legal issues surrounding the AD/CVD case process; enforcement processes among the three NAFTA countries; a description of the scope of various schemes to avoid payment of AD/CVD duties; and a government/industry panel discussion covering fraud and circumvention issues.
Speakers were from both NAFTA governments and the North American steel industry. On the government side, there were representatives of US Customs and Border Protection, Mexico´s Tax Administration Service and the Canada Border Services Agency. From industry, there were representatives of the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI), the Canadian Steel Producers Association (CSPA), the Mexican Steel Producers Association (CANACERO), the Committee on Pipe and Tube Imports (CPTI), the Specialty Steel Industry of North America (SSINA) and the Steel Manufacturers Association (SMA).
Reflective of the widespread interest in the problem, the seminar was attended by a broad and diverse cross-section of approximately 100 people. In addition to dozens of steel and other industry attendees, including trade counsel, those in attendance were from the US Department of Commerce, US Customs and Border Protection, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the office of the US Trade Representative, the US International Trade Commission, the National Association of Manufacturers, US Congressional staff and counsel, the Economics Ministry in Mexico, the Embassy of Mexico in the US, Finance Canada, Industry Canada, the Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, the Canada Border Services Agency and the Embassy of Canada in the US.