The US Commerce Department on Friday set preliminary dumping margin on prestressed concrete steel rail tie wire from China and Mexico, signaling that it may impose punitive duties on the products.
The department made its preliminary affirmative determination that imports of the steel wire from China and Mexico had been sold below the fair value of the products in the US market with dumping margins of 14.64 to 18.02 percent, 27.88 percent, respectively.
Punitive duties would be imposed after both the Commerce Department and the US International Trade Commission (ITC) make affirmative final rulings, which are scheduled for early next year. If the ITC makes a negative determination, the investigations will be terminated.
The Commerce Department launched the investigation on May 14, in response to the petition filed by the Insteel Wire Products Company based in North Carolina and Davis Wire Corporation based in Washington, which alleged that exporters and producers in China, Mexico and Thailand sold these products in the US market at lower prices.
In 2012, the United States imported an estimated 38.2 million US dollars worth of steel wire from China, 23.1 million from Mexico and 1.9 million from Thailand, according to the Commerce Department.
The move is the latest in a string of trade measures targeting imports of other countries, arousing concerns that protectionism is again on the rise in the United States.
Beijing has repeatedly urged Washington to abide by its commitment against protectionism and work with China and other countries to maintain a free, open and just trade environment.
