Canada Hits German, Taiwanese Plate with Anti-dumping Duties

China Steel Corporation, the largest integrated steelmaker in Taiwan, was hit with a dumping margin of 7%. All other Taiwanese exporters of heavy plate could see dumping margins of 80.6%, per the CBSA.

The duties will go into effect should the Canadian International Trade Tribunal (CITT) decide that heavy plate imports from Germany and Taiwan threaten to injure Canada’s domestic steel industry. The CITT’s findings on the matter are due by Feb. 5, 2021.

The trade case process in Canada is like that in the U.S. The CBSA, like the U.S. Commerce Department, calculates duty margins. The CITT, like the U.S. International Trade Commission, decides whether domestic mills have been injured by imports. In Canada, as in the U.S., duties are not imposed unless imports are determined to have injured domestic mills.

Steel Market Update does not officially track Canadian plate prices. But steel prices in Canada tend to trend with prices in the U.S. once currency exchange rates are considered. And prices have been high, in part because of limited domestic supplies and lower import volumes.

SMU’s average plate price stands at $880 per ton, up $120 per ton from $760 per ton at the beginning of December and up $290 per ton from a summer low of $590 per ton.

By Michael Cowden, michael@steelmarketupdate.com