U.S. Stainless Steel Bar Producers Seek Reinstatement of Two Indian Producers - Viraj Profiles and Venus Wire - Back Under Existing Antidumping Duty Order

WASHINGTON, Sept. 29, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Seven U.S. stainless steel bar producers – Carpenter Technology Corporation; Crucible Industries LLC; Electralloy, a Division of G.O. Carlson, Inc.; North American Stainless; Outokumpu Stainless Bar, LLC; Universal Stainless & Alloy Products, Inc.; and Valbruna Slater Stainless, Inc. – announced they have filed a request for changed circumstances reviews charging that Viraj Profiles and Venus Wire Industries Pvt. Ltd. should be immediately reinstated back under the existing antidumping duty order on stainless steel bar from India.  The U.S. producers contend that following Viraj Profiles revocation from the order in 2004 and Venus Wire's revocation from the order in 2011, those companies recently resumed dumping their stainless steel bar into the United States.  The U.S. producers have alleged dumping margins ranging from 9.35 percent to 46.10 percent for Viraj Profiles and 26.68 percent to 77.83 percent for Venus Wire.    

Both Viraj Profiles and Venus Wire were conditionally revoked from the antidumping duty order after receiving zero or de minimis dumping margins for three consecutive administrative review periods.  The Commerce Department granted revocation to Viraj Profiles and Venus Wire contingent on their agreement to immediate reinstatement of the order if they were later found to have resumed dumping stainless steel bar into the U.S. market. 

Under U.S. law, any company that has an order conditionally revoked may be reinstated under an existing order if the Commerce Department finds that the company has resumed dumping following revocation. The domestic steel producers allege that both Viraj Profiles and Venus Wire have resumed dumping and are requesting that the Department initiate changed circumstances reviews of both companies.

"The available evidence shows that Viraj Profiles and Venus Wire have resumed dumping stainless steel bar into the U.S. market.  As such, they should no longer be entitled to benefit from their conditional revocation from coverage under the antidumping duty order. If the antidumping duty order is to function properly, the Department must ensure that conditionally revoked companies adhere to the conditions of their revocation agreements," according to Larry Lasoff, counsel for the domestic petitioners.  "The dumping practices by Viraj Profiles and Venus Wire must be addressed immediately or their behavior will significantly damage the effectiveness of the existing antidumping duty order on stainless bar that U.S. producers worked so hard to put into place."

FACT SHEET

Antidumping 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.  

Next steps:   The Commerce Department is required to determine within 45 days whether to initiate the request for a changed circumstances review and whether to issue a simultaneous preliminary determination that leads to the suspension of liquidation of imports of these products manufactured and exported by Viraj Profiles and Venus Wire.  The entire proceeding must be completed within 270 days.

Product description:  Stainless steel bars are articles of stainless steel in straight lengths that have been either hot-rolled, forged, turned, cold-drawn, cold-rolled or otherwise cold-finished, or ground, having a uniform solid cross section along their whole length in the shape of circles, segments of circles, ovals, rectangles (including squares), triangles, hexagons, octagons, or other convex polygons.  Stainless steel bar includes cold-finished stainless steel bars that are turned or ground in straight lengths, whether produced from hot-rolled bar or from straightened and cut rod or wire, and reinforcing bars that have indentations, ribs, grooves, or other deformations produced during the rolling process. 

Stainless steel bar is used to produce a wide variety of products for use where its corrosion resistance, heat resistance, and/or appearance are desired.  Due to its unique product characteristics, stainless steel bar is widely used in various applications, including the automotive industry; aerospace industry; chemical and petrochemical processing equipment; dairy, food processing, and pharmaceutical equipment; marine applications such as shafts and propellers; pumps and connectors for fluid handling systems; and medical products.  Stainless steel concrete reinforcing bar is used in highly corrosive environments such as bridges and highway systems where road salts are used for ice control, as well as where nonmagnetic reinforcing bars are needed, such as in certain military applications.

Petitioning companies:  The petitioning companies are Carpenter Technology Corporation; Crucible Industries LLC; Electralloy, a Division of G.O. Carlson, Inc.; North American Stainless; Outokumpu Stainless Bar, Inc; Universal Stainless & Alloy Products, Inc.; and Valbruna Slater Stainless, Inc. and are represented by David A. Hartquist, Laurence J. Lasoff, R. Alan Luberda, and Grace Kim of Kelley Drye & Warren LLP.

SOURCE Kelley Drye & Warren LLP