Government Imposes Up to 25.8% Anti-Dumping Duties on Stainless Steel Products from China and Taiwan

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Haeyoung] The Trade Commission of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy has decided to impose anti-dumping duties of up to 25.82% for the next five years on stainless steel flat-rolled products from China, Indonesia, and Taiwan.

On the 22nd, the Trade Commission held its 413th meeting and made a final ruling that these products were imported below normal prices, causing substantial damage to the domestic industry.

The final anti-dumping duty rates by country are China 23.69?25.82%, Indonesia 25.82%, and Taiwan 7.17?9.47%.

Stainless steel flat-rolled products are special steel flat-rolled products designed to resist rust. They are used as core materials in machinery parts, industrial goods, and various consumer products such as automobiles, shipbuilding, chemical plants, aviation, electronics and home appliances, and tableware and kitchenware. Going forward, they are expected to play an important role in the materials, parts, and equipment industry supporting carbon neutrality and the hydrogen economy, including use as key materials like fuel cell separators for hydrogen vehicles.

The domestic market size was between 3 trillion and 4 trillion KRW (approximately 2 million tons) as of 2019. By volume, domestic products account for about 40%, products from China, Indonesia, and Taiwan about 40%, and other countries less than 10%.

This anti-dumping investigation began in July last year following a request from POSCO. It went through a year of preliminary investigation and preliminary ruling, stakeholder meetings, domestic and overseas on-site verifications, and public hearings as part of the main investigation.

The Trade Commission judged that stainless steel flat-rolled products from China, Indonesia, and Taiwan were imported below normal prices, and that these dumped imports caused damage to the domestic industry, including decreased sales volume of like products, reduced market share, and profit decline.

The final anti-dumping duty rates were set at the lower level between the dumping margin and the industry injury rate calculated for each exporting company in the investigated countries.

During the investigation, domestic small and medium importers and demand industries, as well as overseas exporters, requested additional measures from the Trade Commission, stating that imposing anti-dumping duties could raise import prices, reduce volumes, and cause supply and demand difficulties. In response, the Trade Commission decided to exclude some items, such as 200 series steel grades (low nickel content), from the duty imposition to alleviate the burden on small and medium demand industries and to stabilize prices and supply.

Additionally, the Trade Commission agreed to accept the 'price undertaking' proposals from five exporters: Shanxi Tai Steel and Lisco from China, PT Indonesia Qing Shan from Indonesia, and Yusco and Walsin from Taiwan. A price undertaking is a system where exporters voluntarily raise export prices to eliminate damage to the domestic industry caused by dumping.

The Trade Commission plans to notify the Minister of Strategy and Finance of this final ruling. The Minister of Strategy and Finance will confirm and announce whether to impose anti-dumping duties within one year from the investigation start date (September 25, 2020).

If the price increase undertakings are finally accepted, the five exporters who proposed them will be able to export at the voluntarily proposed prices without paying anti-dumping duties.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.