On September 14, 2022, the Mexican investigation agency issued preliminary conclusions related to the anti-dumping investigation with galvanized steel imported from Vietnam. Galvanized steel products under investigation subject to preliminary duty have HS codes: 7210.30.02, 7210.41.01, 7210.41.99, 7210.49.99, 7210.61.01, 7210.70.02, 7212.20.03, 7212.30.03, 7212.40.04, 7225.91.01, 7225.92.01 and 7226.99.99; and codes 9802.00.01, 9802.00.02, 9802.00.03, 9802.00.04, 9802.00.06, 9802.00.07, 9802.00.10, 9802.00.13, 9802.00.15 and 9802.00.19 under the Mexican HS code system.
On August 30, 2021, the Mexican Ministry of Economy initiated an anti-dumping investigation against Vietnam's coated steel, which was published in the Official Gazette of Mexico. This is the first anti-dumping investigation against Vietnamese goods in Mexico.
Based on preliminary data from the International Trade Center (ITC) (http://trademap.org):
- In 2020, Mexico imports about 220 million USD of iron and steel from Vietnam. This import level increased by about 70% compared to 2019.
- During the 2020 investigation period, Vietnam exported about 170 million USD of the products under investigation to Mexico. In 2021, Vietnam's export value was double to about 370 million USD.
On September 14, 2022, the Mexican Ministry of Economy issued a Preliminary Anti-Dumping Decision on imported galvanized steel. In this decision, the Mexican Ministry of Economy has preliminarily determined the existence of dumping and damage to the domestic steel industry.
Accordingly, Mexico imposes a temporary anti-dumping duty on steel products with the above HS code with a duty rate from 0% to 12.34%. It is known that this duty rate is relatively low compared to the cases in which Mexico investigated trade remedies with goods imported from countries into Mexico recently.
It is expected that in the near future, according to Mexico's regulations, this country's investigation agency will conduct an online or face-to-face business verification, and hold a hearing before issuing a final conclusion.
In response to Mexico's duties, manufacturers/exporters related to the products under investigation should actively review their steel export activities to Mexico, as well as master the regulations and procedures of Mexico's anti-dumping investigations, fully cooperates with the Mexican investigation agency throughout the investigation process, and regularly coordinate and exchange information with the Department of Trade Remedies.
In addition, businesses should also consider contacting a law firm specializing in anti-dumping in Vietnam and the world to receive timely support.
Originally published October 16, 2022.
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