U.S. presses for countervailing duties on Chinese steel plate imports

The Commerce Department has preliminarily determined that U.S. imports of carbon and alloy cut-to-length plate steel from China unfairly receive government subsidies.    The Commerce Department has preliminarily determined that U.S. imports of carbon and alloy cut-to-length plate steel from China unfairly receive government subsidies.
   In a similar investigation for South Korea, Commerce found no significant evidence of countervailable subsidies related to these imports.
   A countervailable subsidy is financial assistance from foreign governments to their domestic industries, which is often contingent on the companies’ export performance or their use of domestic goods over imported goods within their manufacturing processes.
   In the China investigation, Commerce calculated preliminary subsidy rates of 210.5 percent for Jiangyin Xingcheng Special Steel Works Co. Ltd., Hunan Valin Xiangtan Iron & Steel, and Viewer Development Co. Ltd. All other Chinese producers/exporters were also assigned a preliminary subsidy rate of 210.5 percent.
   As a result of this preliminary determination for these imports from China, Commerce will instruct Customs and Border Protection to require cash deposits based on these preliminary rates.
   The petitioners for the investigation included ArcelorMittal USA and SSAB Enterprises, both in Illinois; and Nucor Corp. of North Carolina.
   In 2015, imports of cut-to-length steel plate from China and South Korea were valued at $70.3 million and $210 million, respectively.
   As a result of its preliminary determinations, Commerce is scheduled to announce its final determinations by Jan. 19, 2016, unless the statutory deadline is extended.
   If Commerce makes affirmative final determinations, and the U.S. International Trade Commission makes affirmative final determinations that imports of cut-to-length steel plates from China and/or South Korea harms domestic industry, Commerce will issue a countervailing duty order. If either Commerce’s or the ITC’s final determinations are negative, no countervailing duty order will be issued. The ITC is scheduled to make its final injury determinations about 45 days after Commerce issues its final determinations, if affirmative.