U.S. Producers of Cut-to-Length Steel Plate File Trade Petitions Against Twelve Countries

WASHINGTON, April 8, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Three major U.S. steel producers – ArcelorMittal USA, Nucor Corporation,  and SSAB Enterprises – today filed petitions charging that unfairly-traded imports of certain carbon and alloy steel cut-to-length plate ("CTL plate") from Austria, Belgium, Brazil, China, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, South Korea, South Africa, Taiwan and Turkey are causing material injury to the domestic industry.  The petitions allege that producers in each of the twelve countries are dumping CTL plate in the U.S. market at sizeable margins:

The petitions also allege that the Governments of Brazil, China, and South Korea are providing countervailable subsidies to producers of CTL plate. The petitions identify 26 different subsidy programs in Brazil, 44 subsidy programs in China, and 46 subsidy programs in South Korea.

The petitions were filed concurrently with the United States Department of Commerce ("Commerce Department") and the United States International Trade Commission ("USITC").  

The filing is in response to large and increasing volumes of low-priced imports of CTL plate from the subject countries since 2013 that have injured U.S. producers.  Imports targeted by this case account for over 75 percent of total imports in 2015.  The volume of subject imports surged by over 100 percent from 2013 to 2015, rising from 572 thousand tons to 1.2 million tons. Imports from the twelve countries captured an increasing share of the U.S. market over the past three years at the direct expense of competing domestic producers. 

The petitions allege that subject imports were able to penetrate the U.S. market by significantly undercutting U.S. prices.  As a result of increasing volumes of low-priced imports, U.S. producers have suffered significant declines in production, shipments, prices, and profits.  As is true of other steel products subject to ongoing trade investigations, foreign producers of CTL plate in the target countries have massive capacity to produce CTL plate and have used that capacity to export large volumes of unfairly low-priced and subsidized product to the United States.  The price declines and market share reductions that U.S. producers have suffered are likely to continue if duties are not imposed to offset these unfair trading practices.

"Surging volumes of low-priced and unfairly-traded cut-to-length plate from numerous sources have injured U.S. producers and their workers," according to counsel for the domestic petitioners.  "If remedial measures are not imposed, subject imports will continue flooding this market, causing severe injury to an already battered industry." 

FACT SHEET

Antidumping and countervailing duties:  Antidumping duties are intended to offset the amount by which a product is sold at less than fair value, or "dumped," in the United States.  The margin of dumping is calculated by the Commerce Department.  Estimated duties in the amount of the dumping are collected from importers at the time of importation.  Countervailing duties are intended to offset unfair subsidies that are provided by foreign governments and benefit the production of a particular good.  The USITC, an independent agency, will determine whether the domestic industry is materially injured or threatened with material injury by reason of the unfairly traded imports.

Next steps:  The Commerce Department will determine whether to initiate the antidumping and countervailing duty investigations within 20 days of today's filing of the petitions and the USITC will reach a preliminary determination of material injury or threat of material injury within 45 days of today's filing.  The entire investigative process will take approximately one year, with final determinations of dumping, subsidization, and injury likely occurring in the spring of 2017.

Product description:  The product covered by these petitions is certain carbon and alloy steel hot-rolled or forged flat plate not in coils, whether or not painted, varnished or coated with plastics or other non-metallic substances   (cut-to-length plate).  Subject merchandise includes plate that is produced by being cut-to-length from coils and plate that is rolled or forged into a discrete length.  Cut-to-length plate is used in a variety of applications including buildings, bridgework, transmission towers, light poles, equipment for agriculture, construction, mining and heavy transportation, machine parts and tooling, and large diameter pipe.     

Petitioning companies:  The petitioning companies and their law firms are ArcelorMittal USA LLC (represented by Kelley Drye & Warren LLP), Nucor Corporation (represented by Wiley Rein LLP), and SSAB Enterprises, LLC (represented by Schagrin Associates).

SOURCE Kelley Drye & Warren LLP