U.S. Lawmakers Oppose Ruling On Tin Mill Product Imports From China

In a controversial move, on February 6 the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) announced it will not impose trade penalties on tin mill steel products from Canada, China, and Germany even though the U.S. Department of Commerce had determined these products from these countries are sold in the United States at less than fair value and are subsidized by the Chinese government.

The Commerce Department had imposed anti-dumping duties of 2.69 percent to 6.88 percent on tin mill steel as a result of its findings. Those duties are now reversed.

Additionally, the ITC found imports of tin mill steel products from South Korea are negligible and do not harm U.S. companies. (The Commerce Department also had determined South Korean tin mill imports are sold at less than fair value in the United States.) As a result of that finding, the government’s antidumping duty investigation of South Korean imports will be halted.

The ITC report on its decisions will be made public by March 13, 2024. While Canadian officials praised the ruling,

As the South China Morning Post reported,  some U.S. lawmakers criticized the ITC’s ruling. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) said the ITC “got this wrong” and argued the ruling would “make it impossible for Ohio’s tin mill industry and other domestic manufacturers to compete with unfair, illegally dumped steel from countries like China.” Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) agreed, pledging to do “everything” in his power to protect steelworkers and U.S. manufacturing, and noting a “robust” steel industry is vital to U.S. national security.