U.S. Department of Commerce Issues Affirmative Preliminary Antidumping Duty Determinations for Passenger Vehicle and Light Truck Tires from South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam
For Immediate Release
December 30, 2020
Contact: Office of Public Affairs
Phone: 202-482-3809
WASHINGTON - Today, the U.S. Department of Commerce announced affirmative preliminary determinations in the antidumping duty (AD) investigations of passenger vehicle and light truck tires (passenger tires) from South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam. Commerce preliminarily determined that exporters have dumped passenger tires in the United States at rates of 14.24 to 38.07 percent for South Korea, 52.42 to 98.44 percent for Taiwan, 13.25 to 22.21 percent for Thailand, and 0 to 22.30 percent for Vietnam.
As a result of today’s decisions, Commerce will instruct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to collect cash deposits from importers of passenger tires from South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam based on the preliminary rates noted above.
The petitioner is the United Steel, Paper and Forestry, Rubber, Manufacturing, Energy, Allied Industrial and Service Workers International Union, AFL-CIO, CLC (Pittsburgh, PA).
Commerce is scheduled to announce its final determinations in these cases on or about May 14, 2021, unless this deadline is extended.
If Commerce’s final determinations are affirmative, the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) will be scheduled to make its final injury determinations on or about June 28, 2021. If Commerce makes affirmative final determinations of dumping and the ITC makes affirmative final injury determinations, Commerce will issue AD orders. If Commerce makes negative final determinations of dumping or the ITC makes negative final determinations of injury, the investigations will be terminated and no orders will be issued.
The 2019 imports of passenger tires from the countries under investigation were approximately valued as follows:
- $1.17 billion for South Korea;
- $373.0 million for Taiwan;
- $1.96 billion for Thailand; and
- $469.6 million for Vietnam.
Read the fact sheet on today’s decision(s).
Commerce is conducting a concurrent countervailing duty (CVD) investigation of passenger tires from Vietnam. This proceeding remains ongoing.
The strict enforcement of U.S. trade law is a primary focus of the Trump Administration. Since the beginning of the current administration, Commerce has initiated 306 new AD and CVD investigations – a 278 percent increase from the comparable period in the previous administration.
The AD law provides American businesses and workers with an internationally accepted mechanism to seek relief from the harmful effects of unfair pricing of imports into the United States. Commerce currently maintains 542 AD and CVD orders which provide relief to American companies and industries impacted by unfair trade.
Foreign companies that price their products in the U.S. market below the cost of production or below prices in their home markets are subject to antidumping duties.
Commerce’s Enforcement and Compliance unit within the International Trade Administration is responsible for vigorously enforcing U.S. trade laws and does so through an impartial, transparent process that abides by international rules and is based solely on facts submitted to the public record.
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