The U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) announced its final determinations in the antidumping duty (AD) and countervailing duty (CVD) trade cases regarding common alloy aluminum sheet. The DOC has determined that imports of common alloy aluminum sheet from China are being sold at less than fair value (or “dumped”) in the U.S. and that aluminum sheet producers in China are benefitting from actionable government subsidies. The final antidumping and countervailing duty margins calculated by the Commerce Department are as follows:
Antidumping Investigation Margins
- Henan Mingtai Al Industrial Co., Ltd. — 49.85%
- Nanjie Resources Co., Ltd. — 59.72%
- Separate Rate for Cooperative Respondents — 49.85%
- China-wide Rate — 59.72%
Countervailing Duty Investigation Margins
- Henan Mingtai Al Industrial Co., Ltd. — 46.48%
- Yong Jie New Material Co., Ltd. — 55.02%
- “All Other” Rate — 50.75%
- Non-Cooperative Respondent Rate — 116.49%
The DOC’s determinations mark the end of its proceedings, which were self-initiated by the agency on November 28, 2017, the first time in more than a quarter of a century that the department exercised its authority to initiate unfair trade investigations without a domestic industry filing a petition requesting relief.
“The Aluminum Association and its members are extremely pleased with the Commerce Department’s final determinations that common alloy aluminum sheet from China is being sold unfairly in the United States,” said Heidi Brock, president and CEO of the Aluminum Association. “We appreciate Secretary Ross’s leadership in self-initiating these investigations and in enforcing rules-based global trade. U.S. manufacturers of common alloy aluminum sheet are among the most competitive producers in the world, but they cannot compete against products that are sold at unfairly low prices and subsidized by the Government of China.”
The next step in the trade cases will be the U.S. International Trade Commission’s (USITC) final phase determination of whether imports from China are a cause of material injury or threaten to materially injure domestic producers of common alloy sheet. The USITC is tentatively scheduled to vote on December 5, 2018.
Common alloy aluminum sheet is a flat-rolled aluminum product that is used in a variety of applications, including transportation, building and construction, infrastructure, electrical, and marine applications where its strength, relatively light-weight, formability, and resistance to corrosion are essential. Common uses for the product under investigation include gutters and downspouts, building facades, street signs and license plates, electrical boxes, pontoon boats, and tractor trailers for trucks. Aluminum sheet used in the manufacture of beverage cans is excluded from the scope of the investigations.