U.S. anti-dumping measures on foreign steel to help Korean steelmakers

22/10/2014 12:00 - 475 Views

A move by the United States to slap anti-dumping duties on non-oriented electrical steel (NOES) products from six countries, including South Korea, can actually help local steelmakers such as POSCO to export more products, a local traders organization said Wednesday.

The predictions stemmed from a lower dumping margin for South Korean NOES products found by the U.S. Commerce Department than those of China, Japan, Germany, Sweden and Taiwan, said the Korea International Trade Association (KITA).

The findings came after the Commerce Department accepted claims made by Ohio-based AK Steel, which alleged foreign rivals were undercutting the U.S. steelmaker by receiving unfair subsidies from their respective governments and selling products below the price that they received at home.

The dumping margin is the difference between the price in the overseas market and the price in the U.S. market.

The Commerce Department has found a preliminary dumping margin of 6.88 percent for South Korean NOES products, while China's PRC Wide Entity has a staggering 407.52 percent dumping margin. German, Swedish and Japanese companies were found to have dumping margins of between 86 and 204 percent.

NOES products are used in the production of motors and generators.

"The dumping margin for South Korean steel products was sharply lower than those for other countries which have been accused of dumping in the United States," it said.

"South Korea has not shipped out many NOES products to the United States, but because of the latest verdict, it may actually gain an edge compared to its rivals," the organization said.

The findings, which must be confirmed by the U.S. International Trade Commission on Nov. 6, call for the levying of 6.88 percent anti-dumping duties on South Korean NOES products.

Source: Yonhap