The U.S. Department of Commerce has issued a final affirmative determination of circumvention in its investigation of circular welded carbon steel pipe (CWP) produced in Oman using Chinese-origin HR steel, Commerce said in a notice.
Commerce concluded that imports of CWP manufactured by Al Jazeera Steel Products Co. in Oman, using HR steel produced in China, are circumventing existing antidumping and countervailing duty orders on CWP from China.
The products covered consist of CWP, generally circular welded carbon steel pipes and tubes with an outside diameter from 9.45 mm up to 406.4 mm (0.372-16 inches), regardless of wall thickness, surface finish, or end finish, and are commonly referred to as standard or structural pipe.
The circumvention inquiry was initiated at the request of a group of U.S. industry petitioners that included Bull Moose Tube Company, Maruichi American Corporation, Wheatland Tube Company, and the United Steel, Paper and Forestry, Rubber, Manufacturing, Energy, Allied Industrial and Service Workers International Union, AFL-CIO, CLC (collectively the domestic interested parties).
If importers cannot certify that the steel used in the Omani CWP is not of Chinese origin, they will be subject to the China-wide duty rates: 85.55pct for antidumping and 39.01pct for countervailing duties.
Under the final decision, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) will suspend liquidation and require cash deposits on relevant Omani origin CWP entries that contain Chinese-origin HR steel and entered on or after 19 November 2024, the date the circumvention inquiry was initiated.
Importers and exporters can avoid duty liability only by completing required certifications demonstrating that specific entries of Omani origin CWP do not contain Chinese-origin HR steel.
The products subject to the circumvention action are classified under the following HS codes: 7306.50.50.70, 7306.19.10.10, 7306.19.10.50, 7306.19.51.10, and 7306.19.51.50.
