US slaps heavy import duties on Chinese steel shipped from Vietnam
US steel industry has complained that unfairly subsidised Chinese products have been diverted to other countries to circumvent import levies
The US Commerce Department on Monday slapped steep import duties on steel products from Vietnam that originated in China after a final finding they evaded US anti-dumping and anti-subsidy orders.
The decision marked a victory for US steelmakers, who won anti-dumping and anti-subsidy duties against Chinese steel in 2015 and 2016 only to see shipments flood in from elsewhere. The industry has argued that Chinese products are being diverted to other countries to circumvent the duties.
US customs authorities will collect anti-dumping duties of 199.76 per cent and countervailing duties of 256.44 per cent on imports of cold-rolled steel produced in Vietnam using Chinese-origin substrate, the Commerce Department said in a statement.
Corrosion-resistant steel from Vietnam faces anti-dumping duties of 199.43 per cent and anti-subsidy duties of 39.05 per cent, it said.
The department has said it would apply the same Chinese anti-dumping and anti-subsidy rates on corrosion-resistant and cold-rolled steel from Vietnam that starts out as Chinese-made hot-rolled steel.