Tra fish fillets. — Photo oceangift.vn

HA NOI (Biz Hub) — The US Department of Commerce (DOC)'s preliminary report on anti-dumping duties on Vietnamese tra fish fillets has reduced the duty but it is still disadvantageous for Vietnamese exporters.

This is the opinion of the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (Vasep). According to its administrative review (POR 10), the DOC has decided to impose anti-dumping duties ranging from zero to US$2.39 per kilogram on Vietnamese tra fish fillets imported between August 2012 and July 2013.

Vasep said that the duties levied on Vietnamese tra fish fillets are irrational as the DOC continues to see Indonesia as the reference country to decide the dumping margin. Indonesia, in fact, is an importer of Vietnamese frozen tra fillets, not an exporter.

According to the DOC's preliminary decision, Vinh Hoan JSC, a leading local firm exporting tra fish to the US, which was under investigation and was taken off the list of Vietnamese tra fish exporters, enjoys a zero tax rate. Meanwhile, the duties on the Hung Vuong Corporation, a large firm exporting tra fish to the US, and 23 other companies were reduced from $1.2 to $0.58 per kilogram.

The highest duty of $2.39 per kilogram has been imposed on AnviFish as it did not supply specific timely information to the DOC.

The POR 10's preliminary proposals will become effective when the DOC gives its final decision.

The concerned parties will get 120 days to examine the preliminary findings. This will be an important period during which Viet Nam can present data and convincing arguments to persuade the DOC to impose more reasonable duties on Vietnamese products.

Vasep has reported that tra fish exports to the US in May fell by 59.2 per cent compared with May 2013, because the import duties in the US have increased.

In the first five months of this year, Vietnamese exporters earned US$126.6 million, a 26 per cent fall compared with the same period last year. The US and the EU are major tra export markets of Viet Nam. — VNS