U.S. Department of Commerce recently announced antidumping and countervailing duty suspension agreements on white grape juice concentrate from Argentina.
These agreements include an export limit and minimum prices for Argentinian exports and will suspend DOC's investigations into the antidumping and countervailing duty, initiated by a complaint of unfair trade practices, according to a March 20 news release. The goal is to alleviate unfair trade practices such as unfair foreign pricing and subsidization.
"Our investigators work hard to protect U.S. industries and workers against the harm imposed by unfair foreign trade practices by rigorously enforcing U.S. trade law," Commerce Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance Lisa Wang said in the news release. "These agreements will provide an effective remedy for grape farmers and processors of white grape juice concentrate alike, while establishing certainty for fair competition in the years ahead."
The negotiations' outcome "is a critical win for the domestic industry" because it provides "certainty and relief" for domestic producers in the United States, the news release said.
Compliance with the agreements announced this week will be monitored by Commerce’s International Trade Administration's Enforcement and Compliance division via mechanisms that include quarterly signatory reporting and on-site examinations, the release reported.
Currently, the Enforcement and Compliance division administers 665 antidumping and countervailing duty orders, as well as eight suspension agreements, according to the release. The division aims to ensure a level playing field for U.S. industries and compliance with existing trade agreements, while also defending against unfair trade.
In May 2022, the United States International Trade Commission voted to continue investigations into white grape juice concentrate from the South America nation, according to an ITC news release.
The ITC "determined that there is a reasonable indication that a U.S. industry is materially injured by reason of imports of white grape juice concentrate from Argentina that are allegedly subsidized by the government of Argentina and sold in the United States at less than fair value," the ITC release reported.
