US hits LG Chem, Aekyung Petrochemical with preliminary anti-dumping tariffs
By Kang Seung-woo
The U.S. government has imposed preliminary anti-dumping duties on imports of dioctyl terephthalate (DOTP) from Korea.
According to the U.S. Department of Commerce, Friday, a preliminarily investigation found that dumping was committed by mandatory respondents LG Chem and Aekyung Petrochemical, and tariffs of 5.75 percent and 3.96 percent were imposed on them, respectively.
The commerce department also said it had levied a preliminary tariff margin of 4.47 percent on several other unidentified Korean producers and exporters of DOTP.
The chemical product is primarily used as a plasticizer for polyvinyl chloride (PVC).
In 2015, Korean companies exported 25,800 metric tons of DOTP to the United States, worth $31.2 million (36.7 billion won).
Although it was the first anti-dumping decision on Korean exports under the new Donald Trump administration, it has nothing to do with the protectionist stance on trade of the new U.S. president, who took office on Jan. 20.
The U.S. government launched the anti-dumping investigation into DOTP imports from Korea in July 2016 following a petition from American DOTP producer Eastman Chemical Company the previous month.
At the time, alleged dumping margins were estimated between 23.7 percent and 47.86 percent.
Along with the commerce department, the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) also determined, Aug. 12, 2016, that there was a reasonable indication that a U.S. industry was materially injured “by reason of imports of DOTP” from Korea that were allegedly sold in the United States at “less than fair value.”
If the commerce department makes an affirmative final determination, and the ITC makes an affirmative final determination, the former will issue an anti-dumping order. However, if either of their final decisions is negative, no orders will be issued.
The commerce department is scheduled to announce its final determination on June 12 this year, followed by the ITC on July 25.
“Although there will be little impact on us due to our small export volume, we plan to actively respond until the final determination is made,” said an official at LG Chem, which usually exports 4,000 to 6,000 tons of DOTP to the U.S.