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
Price on Trade: The foolishness of free trade with controlled economies
It was only a matter of time before a shutdown happened. And, no, we aren’t talking about the federal government’s lapse in appropriations. On Oct. 9, Beijing announced a series of restrictions that will effectively shut down exports of rare earth elements, magnets, and certain downstream products vital to advanced manufacturing.
Trump pulls plug on trade talks with Canada after anti-tariff Reagan ad
US President Donald Trump took to social media late Thursday night to announce he was canceling trade talks with Canada.
Leibowitz: Renewed trade war with China over rare earths
On Oct.10, President Trump announced major increases in tariffs on Chinese goods. The trigger was a new regime of export controls on rare earth metals and products using those elements, including magnets, capital equipment, and catalysts for catalytic converters in cars and trucks.
Industry piles on new Section 232 steel derivative inclusion requests
The Department of Commerce received 97 submissions from producers, manufacturers, and groups seeking Section 232 tariff coverage for steel and aluminum derivative products.
Price on Trade: New EU steel tariffs don’t mean the US should weaken its stance
Any steel imports into the EU that exceed the new, lower quota level would be subject to a 50% tariff, which represents a major increase from the EU’s current 25% out-of-quota tariff. This move would largely align the EU’s steel tariff rate with Canada and the United States.
