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Initiation of Antidumping Duty Investigations of Thermal Paper from Germany, Japan, Korea, and Spain

Decision to Initiate Antidumping Duty Investigations of Thermal Paper from Germany, Japan, Korea and Spain

On October 28, 2020, the Department of Commerce (Commerce) announced the initiation of antidumping duty (AD) investigations of thermal paper from Germany, Japan, Korea, and Spain.



Alleged Dumping Rates

Country Dumping Rates
Germany 9.20 to 58.90 percent
Japan 129.86 to 140.25 percent
Korea 56.60 to 58.24 percent
Spain 32.68 to 41.45 percent
Event AD Investigation(s)
Petition(s) Filed October 7, 2020
DOC Initiation Date October 27, 2020
ITC Preliminary Determinations[1] November 23, 2020
DOC Preliminary Determinations March 16, 2021
DOC Final Determinations June 1, 2021
ITC Final Determinations[2] July 14, 2021
Issuance of Orders [3] July 21, 2021

Note: Commerce’s preliminary and final determination deadlines are governed by statute. For AD investigations, the deadlines are set forth in sections 733(b) and 735(a) of the Act. These deadlines may be extended under certain circumstances.
[1]If the ITC makes negative preliminary determinations of injury, the investigations are terminated.
[2]This will take place only in the event of final affirmative determinations from Commerce.
[3]This will take place only in the event of final affirmative determinations from Commerce and the ITC.

Country Volume/Value 2017 2018 2019
Germany Volume (KG) 58,099,791 65,652,978 58,964,023
Value (USD) $101,617,301 $137,714,070 $127,338,571
Japan Volume (KG) 38,128,207 34,692,826 34,938,976
Value (USD) $25,309,819 $40,673,625 $31,665,830
Korea Volume (KG) 45,855,301 56,752,180 63,771,933
Value (USD) $71,471,632 $126,141,566 $133,647,384
Spain Volume (KG) 2,818,819 3,355,244 13,786,198
Value (USD) $12,898,564 $15,218,240 $29,252,188

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, accessed through Global Trade Atlas (Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) subheadings 4811.90.8030 and 4811.90.9030). The petitioners contend that imports of thermal paper from Spain are being classified under the wrong statistical subheading and use HTSUS 4811.90 to report imports of thermal paper from Spain; therefore, for purposes of reporting the above import statistics, the data for Spain reflect imports entered under HTSUS 4811.90.

The petitioners are Appvion Operations, Inc. (Appleton, WI) and Domtar Corporation (Fort Mill, SC).

For general information and next steps, please refer to a list of initiation FAQs.

Additional case information including the scope of the investigation are on file electronically via Enforcement and Compliance’s Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Centralized Electronic Service System (ACCESS). Once you log in, please refer to case numbers:

  • A-428-850 for Germany,
  • A-588-880 for Japan,
  • A-580-911 for Korea, and
  • A-469-824 for Spain.

Commerce currently maintains 540 AD and CVD orders which provide relief to American companies and industries impacted by unfair trade.

Since the beginning of the Trump Administration, Commerce has initiated 297 new AD and CVD investigations - this is a 271 percent increase from the comparable period in the previous administration.