The Mexican government, through the Ministry of Economy, concluded the sunset review and decided to definitively extend the antidumping duties on the import of seamless carbon steel pipes from South Korea, Spain, India and Ukraine, which it established in 2018 of up to $378 per metric ton. Additionally, it charges a temporary tax of between 25 and 35 percent for countries with which Mexico does not have a free trade agreement.
“The validity of the definitive compensatory duties of $0.1312 per kilogram ($131.2/mt) for imports from the Iljin Steel company and for other exporting companies originating in Korea is extended for five years; of $0.2067 per kilogram ($206.7/mt) for imports originating in India, and of 0.1701 dollars per kilogram ($170.1/mt) for imports originating in Ukraine,” the government published in its official gazette (DOF).
In the case of Spain, since 2018, the companies Tubos Industrial y Productos Tubulares have committed to the Mexican government “not to directly or indirectly export seamless carbon steel pipe to the Mexican market” at prices less than $1,260/mt for pipe with a diameter of 2 and 6 inches, and $1,360/mt for pipe with a diameter of 8 and 16 inches. With the new resolution, it was set at a single price of $1,870/mt.
The price for Spanish exporters is ex-factory and will be updated annually based on the annual variation of the international price of scrap and inflation in Spain.
Currently, the product is imported into Mexico under tariff codes 7304.19.01, 7304.19.02, 7304.19.99, 7304.39.10, 7304.39.11, 7304.39.12, 7304.39.13, 7304.39.91, 7304.39.92 and 7304.39.99 of the General Import and Export Tax Law (TIGIE).
The Mexican government said that according to the TIGIE, Mexico also charges temporary tariffs to countries with which it does not have a free trade agreement. For codes 7304.19.01, 7304.19.99, 7304.39.10 and 7304.39.12, a temporary tariff of 25 percent is paid and for codes 7304.19.02, 7304.39.11, 7304.39.13 and 7304.39.99, a temporary tariff of 35 percent is paid. The tariff is charged from April 2024 to April 2026.
The review was at the request of Tubos de Acero de México (TAMSA), a unit of Tenaris, a world leader in the production of seamless steel pipes for the oil industry in the world. Tenaris, like the steel company Ternium, is part of the Techint Group.