On Friday, The US International Trade Commission endorsed anti-dumping duties on steel pipe imports from four Asian countries, Turkey, and Ukraine.
The USITC voted on 22 August that imports of oil country tubular goods (OCTG) from South Korea, India, Taiwan, Turkey, Ukraine, and Vietnam are harming the domestic industry. OCTG are pipe and tube products used in the oil industry, such as drill pipe, casing, and tubulars.
Korea's Yonhap ("free trade") news agency said the decision is expected to deal a blow to the Korean industry, which exports 98.5% of its tubular steel to the US market.
The USITC decision came after the US Department of Commerce determined on 11 July, to impose antidumping duties of 9.89% to 15.75% against OCTG products from nine countries, saying they are imported at below-market prices.
Commerce said in February that South Korean steel tubulars account for more than half of all OCTG imports into the US, and that the country has shipped goods to the US market at prices below fair value in deceptive ways designed to circumvent international trade laws.
While it endorsed claims against six countries, the USITC rejected claims that the Philippines and Thailand dumped pipe on the US market, and took no action against Saudi Arabia.
The case began last year, when US steelmakers filed a complaint against Korea and other countries. US steelmaking operations were suffering, leading to layoffs in Lorain, Ohio, and the idling of plants in Bellville, TX and McKeesport, PA.
US Steel is the largest US steel producer by volume, and spokeswoman Sarah A. Cassella noted, “The ITC decision does not change the indefinite idling of McKeesport.”
Scott Paul, president of the Alliance for American Manufacturing (AAM), said "The damage already done to our domestic steel industry is severe."
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