Trade Cases

Commerce sets initial CVDs of 0-140% in coated steel trade case

Written by Laura Miller

February 4, 2025

The Commerce Department on Tuesday issued preliminary subsidy rates in the corrosion-resistant steel (CORE) trade case.

The agency set minimal countervailing duty (CVD) rates for Brazil and Mexico, mostly high rates for Vietnam, and low rates for Canada, except for one privately held distributor.

Commerce assigned that company, Nova Steel, and a handful of Vietnamese companies higher initial subsidy rates “based on facts available with adverse inferences,” it said in a fact sheet on Tuesday. Basically, these smaller companies were penalized with higher rates for failing to respond to Commerce’s initial questionnaires, veteran international trade attorney Lewis Leibowitz told SMU.

US Customs and Borders Protection (CBP) will immediately begin collecting CVDs on coated steel imports at the rates shown in the table below.

Exporter/producerPreliminary
subsidy rates
* indicates rate based on facts available with adverse inferences.
Brazil
CSN
Usiminas/Ternium Brasil
All others		1.72%
0.33% de minimis
1.72%
Canada
ArcelorMittal group, including Dofasco
Stelco
Nova Steel
All others		1.21%
1.40%
41.40%*
1.22%
Mexico
Ternium Mexico
Galvasid
All others		1.56%
0%
1.56%
Vietnam
Hao San Group
Ton Dong A Corporation
190 Steel Pipe Co.
Vietnam Germany Steel JSC
Vietnam Steel Pipe Co.
Vina One Steel Manufacturing Corporation
VNSteel
All others		0.13% de minimis
0%
140.05%*
140.05%*
140.05%*
140.05%*
140.05%*
140.05%*
46.73%

Note that de minimis rates are so low that cash deposits aren’t typically required at those rates.

Updated case timeline

Commerce also announced it would appease petitioners’ request to align the final phases of the subsidy and less-than-fair-value/anti-dumping (AD) investigations.

Thus an updated case timeline is shown below. Note that CBP will only collect CVDs over the next two months, with the collection of AD duties starting in early April.

Upcoming CORE trade case eventsCurrent due date
DOC preliminary AD marginApril 3
DOC final AD & CVD margin determinationJune 17
ITC final AD & CVD final determination August 1

CORE import statistics

Commerce also released statistics on CORE imports from the above countries in recent years, which may be of interest to our readers. These figures include galvanized and Galvalume sheet and all coated products covered in these investigations.

Country202120222023
Source: US Department of Commerce
Brazil
Volume – short tons
Value per short ton		200,959
$1,301		200,991
$1,309		209,729
$926
Canada
Volume – short tons
Value per short ton		1,075,834
$1,204		998,198
$1,397		1,025,527
$1,220
Mexico
Volume – short tons
Value per short ton		577,556
$1,699		558,791
$1,660		525,366
$1,355
Vietnam
Volume – short tons
Value per short ton		605,045
$1,034		638,655
$1,177		266,840
$905

Laura Miller

Laura Miller is a reporter and editor for Steel Market Update. She has held a variety of positions within the steel industry since 2007, including reporting and editing for Steel Business Briefing/Platts, the Association for Iron and Steel Technology, and Kallanish Commodities, as well as marketing for what was then known as ThyssenKrupp Steel USA (now AM/NS Calvert). After a five-year hiatus working across other industries, she returned to steel in 2021 and has covered the flat rolled, tubular, and trade areas of the industry. She is a member of the Association of Women in the Metal Industries and a past-president of the AWMI Pittsburgh Chapter. She holds a BA in Latin American Studies from Edinboro University of Pennsylvania. She can be reached at laura@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-759-7869.

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