The US Department of Commerce initiated an investigation against trade remedy duty evasion with steel pipe products imported from Vietnam

On July 29, 2022, the US Department of Commerce (DOC) issued an official notice on the initiation of an investigation into trade remedy evasion with respect to a number of steel pipe products imported from Vietnam.

Steel pipe products imported from Vietnam mainly belong to HS codes 7306.61 and 7306.30

It is known that the US initiated an investigation based on a request from large steel pipe manufacturers in the US accusing Vietnam of importing Hot Rolled Steel (HRS) – the main raw material for the production of steel pipe – from China, Taiwan – China, Korea, and India.

According to the information in the application, Vietnamese enterprises then take and simply process them into steel pipes and export them to the US in order to avoid the trade remedy duty that the US is applying to China, Taiwan – China, Korea, and India.

Initiating an investigation against trade remedy duty evasion with steel pipe products imported from Vietnam

According to regulations, enterprises producing and exporting Vietnamese steel pipe products will have 30 days from the date of initiation of the investigation to submit comments and provide counter-information to the US investigation agency.

Within 300 days of initiation, the U.S. Department of Commerce must provide a final conclusion of the case. However, if this time is not enough, the DOC may extend the investigation period, but the total time must not exceed 365 days.

In order to ensure their legitimate interests, enterprises producing and exporting steel pipe products need to study clearly the regulations on anti-dumping and evasion of trade remedies of the United States, working closely with the Vietnam Department of Trade Remedies and a reputable anti-dumping law firm in Vietnam and internationally to give an accurate response to the case within the allotted time throughout the course of the case.

The detailed notice can be downloaded here.

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.