U.S. applies dumping duties to steel wire rod imports

The Commerce Department will begin assessing antidumping duties on imports of carbon and alloy steel wire rod from Belarus, Russia, and the United Arab Emirates, Commerce said in a statement Tuesday.    The U.S. Commerce Department will begin assessing antidumping duties on imports of carbon and alloy steel wire rod from Belarus, Russia, and the United Arab Emirates, the department said in a statement Tuesday.
   Dumping occurs when a foreign company sells its products in the United States at less than fair value.
   In its Belarus investigation, Commerce assigned a dumping rate of 280.02 percent to Byelorussian Steel Works (BSW) and all other Belarusian producers and exporters of wire rod.
   Commerce in its Russia investigation found that Abinsk Electric Steel Works Ltd. and JSC NLMK-Ural, were dumping wire rod on the U.S. market at margins of 756.93 percent. For all other Russian producers and exporters of this product, the department established a dumping margin of 436.8.
   In its UAE investigation, Commerce found that Emirates Steel Industries PJSC was dumping wire rod in the U.S. market at a margin of 84.1 percent. The department established a dumping margin of 84.1 percent for all other UAE producers and exporters of wire rod.
   Commerce will now instruct Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to collect cash deposits from importers of wire rod from the three countries based on these final rates.
   Since Commerce also found that critical circumstances exist with respect to all Russian producers and exporters, Commerce will instruct CBP to collect cash deposits retroactively on all entries of wire rod from Russia for a period starting 90 days before the preliminary determinations (Sept. 5, 2017).
   The department estimated in 2016 that steel wire rod imports from Belarus, Russia and the UAE were valued at $10.4 million, $32.3 million and $7 million, respectively. 
   The petitioners for these Commerce investigations include Gerdau Ameristeel US Inc. of Florida, Nucor Corp. in North Carolina, Keystone Consolidated Industries of Texas, and Charter Steel in Wisconsin.
   The U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) is scheduled to make its final determinations in these antidumping investigation by Jan. 5, 2018. If the ITC makes affirmative final determinations that these imports harm the domestic industry, Commerce will issue antidumping orders. However, if the ITC makes negative determinations of injury, the investigations will end.