SUA applauds ITC’s second look at Mexican sugar import investigations

The International Trade Commission will re-examine the agreements suspending antidumping and countervailing duty investigations of Mexican sugar imports.    The Sweetener Users Association (SUA) applauded the U.S. International Trade Commission’s Federal Register notice on Friday that it will examine the agreements suspending the antidumping and countervailing duty investigations of Mexican sugar imports.
   “We are pleased that the ITC is taking a second look at the ill-conceived suspension agreements in the AD and CVD investigations of Mexican sugar imports,” the group said in a statement.
   “Managed trade between the United States and Mexico that further restricts sugar imports is detrimental to the U.S. sugar-using industry, and ultimately all American consumers, because the United States does not produce enough sugar annually to meet our domestic needs. We have long argued, and will continue to argue, against such an arrangement, which sets a bad precedent for our bilateral trade relationship and could be locked in for several decades,” SUA added.
   Since the U.S. sugar producers filed the antidumping and countervailing duty petitions with the ITC an Commerce Department in March, SUA has supported the cases being allowed to proceed to a final injury determination at the ITC. 
    “It is our firm belief that the real culprit is not Mexico; it’s the outdated sugar program,” SUA said. “The Depression-era program has cost consumers and businesses billions a year, taxpayers nearly $300 million in FY 2013 and the U.S. economy nearly 127,000 food manufacturing jobs.”