Today, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross announced the affirmative preliminary determinations in the antidumping duty (AD) investigations of imports of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) resin from Brazil, the Republic of Indonesia (Indonesia), the Republic of Korea (Korea), Pakistan, and Taiwan.
“The Department will use every tool at our disposal to defend U.S. industry against unfair trade practices,” said Secretary Ross. “Today’s decision allows U.S. producers of PET resin to receive relief from the market-distorting effects of potential dumping while the open and transparent process of investigating this matter continues.” Commerce preliminarily determined that exporters from Brazil, Indonesia, Korea, Pakistan, and Taiwan have sold PET resin in the United States at less than fair value at the following preliminary dumping rates: * Brazil – 24.09 percent to 226.91 percent; * Indonesia – 13.16 percent; * Korea – 8.81 percent to 101.41 percent; * Pakistan – 7.75 percent; * Taiwan – 9.02 percent to 11.89 percent.
As a result of today’s decision, Commerce will instruct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to collect cash deposits from importers of PET resin from Brazil, Indonesia, Korea, Pakistan, and Taiwan based on these preliminary rates.
In 2016, imports of PET resin from Brazil, Indonesia, Korea, Pakistan, and Taiwan were valued at an estimated $51.7 million, $35.7 million, $24 million, $34.1 million, and $109.8 million, respectively.
The petitioners are DAK Americas, LLC (Charlotte, NC), Indorama Ventures USA, Inc. (Decatur, AL), M&G Polymers USA, LLC (Houston, TX), and Nan Ya Plastics Corporation, America (Lake City, SC). Indorama Ventures USA, Inc. is not a petitioner with respect to the Indonesia investigation.
Enforcement of U.S. trade law is a prime focus of the Trump administration. Commerce has initiated 112 new antidumping and countervailing duty investigations since the beginning of the Trump administration. This is 75 percent more than the 64 initiations in the last 465 days of the previous administration.
The AD law provides U.S. businesses and workers with an internationally accepted mechanism to seek relief from the harmful effects of unfair pricing of imports into the United States. Commerce currently maintains 432 antidumping and countervailing duty orders which provide relief to American companies and industries impacted by unfair trade.
Commerce is scheduled to announce the final determinations in these investigations on or about Sept. 17, 2018. If Commerce makes affirmative final determinations of dumping and the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) makes affirmative final injury determinations, Commerce will issue AD orders. If Commerce makes negative final determinations of dumping or the ITC makes negative final determinations of injury, the investigations will be terminated and no orders will be issued.
Click HERE for a fact sheet on today’s decisions.
Commerce’s Enforcement and Compliance unit within the International Trade Administration is responsible for vigorously enforcing U.S. trade laws and does so through an impartial, transparent process that abides by international law and is based solely on factual evidence.
Foreign companies that price their products in the U.S. market below the cost of production or below prices in their home markets are subject to antidumping duties.
Source: U.S. Department of Commerce
