U.S. Commerce Department Lowers Countervailing Duty on POSCO Product

17/06/2019 12:00 - 423 Views

The United States Department of Commerce has lowered its countervailing duty on POSCO’s hot-rolled steel sheets from 41.57 percent to 0.55 percent.

The United States Department of Commerce lowered its countervailing duty on POSCO’s hot-rolled steel sheets from 41.57 percent to 0.55 percent at its annual review on June 14. The final duty is scheduled to be fixed at its anti-dumping determination late this month. South Korean steelmakers’ exports to the United States are expected to rebound if the anti-dumping duty rate is lowered as well.

Three years ago, the department imposed a countervailing duty of 58.86 percent on the product. However, the United States Court of International Trade told the department on May 1 this year to lower the duty by approximately 17 percentage points, saying that the 58.86 percent duty was baseless. The court order is valid until the final determination of the primary annual review.

At that time, the department imposed a countervailing duty of 3.95 percent on Hyundai Steel. The duty was adjusted to 0.58 percent this time. 0.56 percent is applied to the other South Korean steelmakers.

According to industry sources, the tariff adjustment is because the steelmakers submitted their data with sincerity and the government did not recklessly apply Adverse Facts Available (AFA). Last year, their hot-rolled steel sheet exports to the United States totaled 477,000 tons.

June 17, 2019
Source: Business Korea