Trade Cases

OCTG Imports from Argentina, Mexico, Russia Under Investigation
Written by Tim Triplett
November 19, 2021
At the direction of the U.S. International Trade Commission, the U.S. Commerce Department will continue to investigate oil country tubular goods (OCTG) imports from Argentina, Mexico and Russia that are allegedly being subsidized and dumped in the U.S. at below fair value.
In a Nov. 19 vote, the USITC ruled there is reasonable indication that the U.S. industry is being materially injured by unfair OCTG imports from the three nations. It accuses the governments of Russia and South Korea of subsidizing their OCTG producers.
The investigation covers hollow steel products of circular cross section including seamless or welded oil well casing and tubing, as well as OCTG coupling stock.
Petitioners in the case include Borusan Mannesmann Pipe U.S., PTC Liberty Tubulars, U.S. Steel Tubular Products, Welded Tube USA and the AFL-CIO.
The Commerce Department will issue its preliminary countervailing duty determinations by Dec. 30 and its preliminary antidumping duty determinations by March 15, 2022.
According to the filing, U.S. producers had OCTG shipments of $2.1 billion in 2020. Imports from the nations in question amounted to $493 million of a total $3.1 billion in U.S. consumption.
Unfair imports of OCTG products don’t just impact producers of tubular goods. The OCTG sector is a major consumer of the flat-rolled steel and plate produced in the U.S.
By Tim Triplett, Tim@SteelMarketUpdate.com

Tim Triplett
Read more from Tim TriplettLatest in Trade Cases

Leibowitz on Trade: The New World Orders
The question of the new world order was on many minds last week when I spoke on another SMU Community Chat. The short answer is that nobody knows in detail what the effects of all the economic and geopolitical developments will be.

Canadian agency launches OCTG import probe
Canada has launched an investigation into the alleged dumping of imports of oil country tubular goods (OCTG) by five countries – Korea, the Philippines, Turkey, Mexico, and the United States.

US and China delay reciprocal tariffs, Section 232 tariffs stand
US President Donald Trump extended the US and China’s 90-day pause on planned reciprocal tariffs on Monday.

Price on Trade: 40% Brazil tariffs, Section 232 copper program, and misplaced carbon claims
The administration continues to negotiate deals with US trading partners, and the reciprocal tariff program appears poised for further modification. This week, we focus on other important developments that may have received less media attention.

Leibowitz on trade: Trump’s reciprocal tariffs face mounting legal challenges
The tariffs amount to a wholesale transformation of US trade policy from one promoting increasing international interaction to one of restricting trade to serve national strategic goals.