The Canada Border Services Agency announced that it is initiating investigations into the alleged injurious dumping and subsidizing of certain pup joints originating in or exported from the People Republic of China. Pup joints are oil country tubular goods made of carbon or alloy steel.

The investigations follow a complaint filed by Dover Corporation Limited of Edmonton, Alberta. The complainant alleges that the dumping and subsidizing of these goods are harming Canadian production by causing the following lost sales, price erosion, price suppression, lost revenues, reduced gross margins, reduced profitability, loss of market share, loss of employment, reduced returns on investment and underutilization of capacity.

Dumping occurs when goods are sold to importers in Canada at prices that are less than their selling prices in the exporter domestic market or at unprofitable prices. Subsidizing occurs when goods imported into Canada benefit from foreign government financial assistance. The Special Import Measures Act protects Canadian producers from the damaging effects of such unfair trade.

The Canadian International Trade Tribunal will now begin a preliminary inquiry to determine whether the imports are harming Canadian producers and will issue a decision by November 10 2011. While the Tribunal is examining the question of injury, the CBSA will investigate whether the imports are being dumped and/or subsidized and will make a decision by December 12 2011.

If the Tribunal determines that an unusually large increase in harmful imports has occurred prior to the CBSA decision and that the retroactive application of anti-dumping or countervailing duty is therefore justified, duty could be levied on the goods brought into Canada as of today.