The US Department of Commerce (DOC) announced the initiation of new antidumping (AD) investigations on imports of seamless carbon and alloy steel standard, line, and pressure pipe (seamless pipe) from the Czech Republic, Russia, Korea, and Ukraine, and countervailing duty (CVD) investigations for these products from Russia and Korea.
The petitions were filed by Vallourec Star, LP (Houston, Texas). The 2019, imports of seamless pipe from the Czech Republic, Russia, Korea, and Ukraine were approximately valued at $37.1 million, $39.5 million, $24.4 million, and $40.6 million respectively.
In the AD investigations, the DOC will determine whether imports of seamless pipe from the Czech Republic, Russia, Korea, and Ukraine are being dumped in the US market at less-than-fair value. The alleged dumping margins range from 50.45 to 51.70 percent, 41.07 to 273.47 percent, 114.80 to 131.31 percent, and 42.38 to 42.88 percent for the Czech Republic, Russia, Korea, and Ukraine, respectively.
In the Russia and Korea CVD investigations, the DOC will determine whether Russian and Korean producers of subject merchandise are receiving unfair government subsidies. For Russia, the DOC will investigate 11 subsidy programs, including preferential lending, grant programs, and the provision of natural gas for less than adequate remuneration. For Korea, the DOC will investigate 38 subsidy programs, including preferential lending, tax programs, export insurance, grants, and electricity subsidies.
If the DOC makes affirmative findings in these investigations, and if the US International Trade Commission (ITC) determines that dumped and/or unfairly subsidized US imports of seamless pipe from the Czech Republic, Russia, Korea, and/or Ukraine materially injure, or threaten material injury to, the US industry, the DOC will impose duties on those imports in the amount of dumping and/or unfair subsidization found to exist.
The ITC will make its preliminary determinations by August 24, 2020. If the ITC preliminarily determines that there is a reasonable indication of material injury or threat of material injury, then the DOC’s investigations will continue, with the preliminary CVD determinations scheduled to be announced October 2, 2020 and the preliminary AD determinations scheduled to be announced December 16, 2020 unless these deadlines are extended.
Final determinations by the DOC in these cases are scheduled to be announced December 16, for the CVD investigations, and March 2, 2021, for the AD investigations, but these dates may be extended.