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According to information from the Vietnam Timber and Forest Product Association (Viforest), the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) will issue its final determination on the anti-circumvention inquiry of anti-dumping and countervailing duties on hardwood plywood imports from Vietnam, following a prolonged delay. Under this final determination, up to 37 Vietnamese companies could be subject to the aforementioned high rates of anti-dumping and countervailing duties, ranging from 183.36% for anti-dumping duties and 22.98% for countervailing duties.
Viforest’s sources reported that the DOC will maintain the preliminary findings for the scope of investigated products. However, three production scenarios related to circumvention of anti-dumping and countervailing duties have been reviewed by the DOC, which might result in some adjustments compared to the preliminary findings.
The changes include:
- Front and back veneers with assembled core components (e.g., core veneer sheets) produced in China and assembled in Vietnam.
- Completely assembled core veneer sheets produced in China, combined with front and/or back veneer layers produced in Vietnam or a third country.
- Multilayered core veneer sheets produced in China, combined in Vietnam to produce core plywood panels and further combined with front and/or back veneers produced in China, Vietnam, or a third country.
Two production scenarios were identified by the DOC as circumventing the anti-dumping and countervailing duties:
- Front and back veneer sheets and individual core veneer sheets produced in China, then assembled into hardwood plywood in Vietnam.
- Individual core veneer sheets produced in China, processed into a complete core in Vietnam, and combined with a front and/or back veneer produced in Vietnam and another third country.
In the preliminary findings, the DOC named 22 uncooperative companies in providing complete answers to the questionnaires related to the anti-dumping and countervailing duty investigations. However, after review, two Vietnamese companies, An An Plywood Corporation and Greatwood Hung Yen Corporation, were removed from the list.
Conversely, some companies initially identified as cooperative and fully responsive in the preliminary findings were later determined to be uncooperative in the final determination. These companies include Cam Lam Joint Stock Company, TL Trung Viet Company Limited, VVAT Company Limited, and Zhongjia Wood Company Limited.
In total, the list of companies not cooperating with the DOC in answering the questionnaires based on the final determination includes 24 companies. Additionally, the DOC also released a list of 13 companies that provided incomplete and inaccurate responses leading to an adverse determination in answering the questionnaires.
Based on the information provided, the 37 Vietnamese companies mentioned above face the highest potential duty rates of 183.36% for anti-dumping duties and 22.98% for countervailing duties according to the final determination. Moreover, these companies will not be eligible for the self-certification mechanism.
ASL LAW is the top-tier Vietnam law firm for Anti-dumping & countervailing. If you need any advice, please contact us for further information or collaboration.
