VN asks to be excluded from Philippines' investigations on steel
The Trade Remedies Authority of Viet Nam has asked the Philippines to exclude Việt Nam from three safeguard investigations on some steel products.
The Trade Remedies Authority of Viet Nam has asked the Philippines to exclude Viet Nam from three safeguard investigations on some steel products.
The proposal was stressed in the Trade Remedies Authority of Viet Nam’s consultation letter recently sent to the Philippines’ Department of Trade and Industry.
In the letter, the Trade Remedies Authority of Viet Nam expressed concern about the Philippines’ initiation of three safeguard investigations on steel products imported into the country, including aluminium zinc sheets, coils and strips, pre-painted galvanized iron and pre-painted aluminium zinc, and galvanized iron sheets, coils and strips.
Viet Nam also asked the Philippines to strictly abide by rules for safeguard investigations and imposition in accordance with the World Trade Organisation’s safeguard agreement.
In addition, the Philippines needed to use the most updated import date when analysing and assessing the injuries caused by the imports on its domestic industry.
According to the Trade Remedies Authority of Viet Nam, the Philippines’ imports of the products from Viet Nam were not considerable and it was eligible for Viet Nam to be excluded from safeguard measures following the WTO’s rules.
The agency would continue to cooperate with the Vietnamese Embassy in the Philippines, Vietnamese Trade Office in the Philippines, the Viet Nam Steel Association and producers to keep a close watch on the investigations to protect the legitimate rights of Vietnamese producers and exporters.
The steel industry of Viet Nam has recently faced increasing pressure due to investigations for trade defence measures.
In February, Thailand issued the final conclusion of an anti-dumping investigation on iron steel piles originating or imported from Viet Nam, with the imposition of anti-dumping duties from 6.97 per cent to 51.61 per cent.
At the end of March, Malaysia initiated anti-dumping duty on galvanised steel from Viet Nam with the alleged dumping margin of up to 39.27 per cent.
Canada in March also imposed temporary anti-dumping and anti-subsidy duties on corrosion-resistant steel from several countries, including Viet Nam, at the rates ranging from 36.3 per cent to 91.8 per cent, depending on each enterprise.
Also in March, Australia initiated anti-dumping and anti-subsidy investigations on steel pipe originating from Viet Nam, China, the Republic of Korea and Taiwan.
On May 13, the US Department of Commerce initiated an investigation for tax evasion measures against stainless steel sheet products imported from Viet Nam. — VNS
