U.S. To Impose Taxes on Chinese Hardwood and Decorative Plywood

The U.S. Department of Commerce announced preliminary results on the 27th that China’s exports of hardwoods and decorative plywood to the United States have been subsidized by the Chinese government with subsidies ranging from 0.22% to 27.16%.

The U.S. Department of Commerce said in a statement that the subsidies received by Linyi Dongfang Jinxin Economic and Trade Co., Ltd., Linyi Shengfuyuan Wood Industry Co., Ltd. and Shanghai Senda Wood Industry Co., Ltd. were less than 2%, so no anti-subsidy is proposed. tax. The U.S. requires the subsidy of developing countries not to exceed 2% and developed countries not to exceed 1%. For 15 Chinese companies that have not responded to the US Department of Commerce’s investigation, the US Department of Commerce intends to levy 27.16% of countervailing duties. All other Chinese manufacturers and exporters of such products are expected to levy 22.63% of countervailing subsidies. tax.

The statement also stated that based on the preliminary results of the subsidy, the U.S. Department of Commerce will notify U.S. Customs to impose a corresponding countervailing duty deposit on such products. According to the US Department of Commerce’s latest law on enforcement of trade laws, starting from November 2, 2011, importers of the products concerned must pay a cash deposit to the customs after the preliminary results are published and before the countervailing duty order is issued.

According to the US procedure, the US Department of Commerce must also make a final ruling before the official collection of countervailing duties, and another US federal agency, the International Trade Commission, will make a ruling. According to the latest schedule, the U.S. Department of Commerce will make a final ruling in July 2013, and the International Trade Commission will make a final ruling in August 2013. If the U.S. Department of Commerce and the International Trade Commission both affirmatively declare that such products imported from China will cause material damage or damage to U.S. related industries, the U.S. Department of Commerce will require the Customs to impose countervailing duties on related products. .

The United States Hardwood Plywood Fair Trade Federation filed a complaint with the US Department of Commerce on September 27 last year. The consortium consists of six companies in North Carolina, New York and Oregon. The Federation believes that the dumping margins of hardwood and decorative plywood exported from China to the United States range from 298.36% to 321.68%, and the subsidy rate also exceeds the allowable range of 2%. The US Department of Commerce launched anti-dumping and countervailing investigations on such products on October 18 last year.

According to data from the US Department of Commerce, the US imported hardwood and decorative plywood from China worth US$616.5 million in 2011.

In recent years, the slow recovery of the U.S. economy has led to the rise of domestic trade protectionism. The Chinese Ministry of Commerce has repeatedly stated that it hopes that the U.S. government will abide by its opposition to trade protectionism, jointly safeguard a free, open and fair international trade environment, and properly handle trade frictions in a more rational manner.