Petition Filed for New AD/CVD on Corrosion-Resistant Steel From 10 Countries

Steel Dynamics, Nucor, U.S. Steel, Wheeling-Nippon Steel and the United Steelworkers labor union requested the investigations, though U.S. Steel, Wheeling-Nippon and the USW didn't join on the petitions for AD/CVD on Canada. Nucor took no position on the request for AD on Mexico.

Commerce issued AD/CVD orders on corrosion resistant steel products from China, India, Italy, South Korea, and Taiwan in 2016. Yieh Phui and Synn were subsequently exempted from the AD order on Taiwan, so the new petition on Taiwan would apply AD to those two companies. The new petitions also expand on the scope of the 2016 orders, including new alloys from all 10 countries, including from all Taiwanese companies, that aren't covered by the scope of the existing duties.

Proposed Scope

The petition proposes the following scope for the investigations:

"For purposes of these investigations, the products covered are certain flat-rolled steel products, either clad, plated, or coated with corrosion-resistant metals such as zinc, aluminum, or zinc-, aluminum-, nickel- or iron-based alloys, whether or not corrugated or painted, varnished, laminated, or coated with plastics or other non-metallic substances in addition to the metallic coating. The products covered include coils that have a width of 12.7 mm or greater, regardless of form of coil (e.g., in successively superimposed layers, spirally oscillating, etc.). The products covered also include products not in coils (e.g., in straight lengths) of a thickness less than 4.75 mm and a width that is 12.7 mm or greater and that measures at least 10 times the thickness. The products covered also include products not in coils (e.g., in straight lengths) of a thickness of 4.75 mm or more and a width exceeding 150 mm and measuring at least twice the thickness. The products described above may be rectangular, square, circular, or other shape and include products of either rectangular or non-rectangular cross-section where such crosssection is achieved subsequent to the rolling process, i.e., products which have been 'worked after rolling’' (e.g., products which have been beveled or rounded at the edges).

"For purposes of the width and thickness requirements referenced above:

"(1) Where the nominal and actual measurements vary, a product is within the scope if application of either the nominal or actual measurement would place it within the scope based on the definitions set forth above, and

"(2) where the width and thickness vary for a specific product (e.g., the thickness of certain products with non-rectangular cross-section, the width of certain products with non-rectangular shape, etc.), the measurement at its greatest width or thickness applies.

"Steel products included in the scope of these investigations are products in which: (1) iron predominates, by weight, over each of the other contained elements; and (2) the carbon content is 2 percent or less, by weight.

"Subject merchandise also includes corrosion-resistant steel that has been further processed in a third country, including but not limited to annealing, tempering, painting, varnishing, trimming, cutting, punching and/or slitting or any other processing that would not otherwise remove the merchandise from the scope of the investigations if performed in the country of manufacture of the in-scope corrosion resistant steel.

"All products that meet the written physical description are within the scope of these investigations unless specifically excluded. The following products are outside of and/or specifically excluded from the scope of these investigations:

• Flat-rolled steel products either plated or coated with tin, lead, chromium, chromium oxides, both tin and lead ('terne plate') or both chromium and chromium oxides ('tin free steel'), whether or not painted, varnished or coated with plastics or other non-metallic substances in addition to the metallic coating;
• Clad products in straight lengths of 4.7625 mm or more in composite thickness and of a width which exceeds 150 mm and measures at least twice the thickness;
• Certain clad stainless flat-rolled products, which are three-layered corrosion-resistant carbon steel flat-rolled products less than 4.75 mm in composite thickness that consist of a carbon steel flat-rolled product clad on both sides with stainless steel in a 20%-60%-20% ratio; and

"Also excluded from the scope of the antidumping duty investigation on corrosion-resistant steel from Taiwan are any products covered by the existing antidumping duty order on corrosion-resistant steel from Taiwan. See Certain Corrosion-Resistant Steel Products From India, Italy, the People’s Republic of China, the Republic of Korea and Taiwan: Amended Final Affirmative Antidumping Determination for India and Taiwan, and Antidumping Duty Orders, 81 Fed. Reg. 48,390 (Dep’t Commerce July 25, 2016)."

Commerce Accepting Comments on Petition Support

The Commerce Department is accepting comments on domestic industry support for the petitions to determine whether the petitions meet the dual requirements of support by domestic producers or workers accounting for (1) at least 25% of the total production of the domestic-like product and (2) more than 50% of the production of the domestic-like product produced by that portion of the industry expressing support for, or opposition to, the petition. If the petitions meet these requirements, among others, Commerce will initiate an antidumping duty investigation. Commerce will accept comments on industry support until Sept. 18.