Preliminary antidumping duties on PE retail carrier bags imposed in USA

30-Oct-09

The US Department of Commerce issued affirmative preliminary determinations in the antidumping duty investigations of imports of polyethylene retail carrier bags from Indonesia and Vietnam, and published in the Federal Register an affirmative preliminary determination in the antidumping duty investigation of imports of polyethylene retail carrier bags from Taiwan. The Dept found that imports are being dumped, i.e., sold in the U.S. market at less than fair value, from all three countries. The preliminary dumping margins calculated range from 67.18% to 67.62% for Indonesia, from 52.30% to 76.11% for Vietnam, and from 28.69% to 95.81% for Taiwan. U.S. importers of polyethylene retail carrier bags (i.e., plastic grocery and shopping bags) from Taiwan are now required to post a bond or pay a cash deposit on each entry sufficient to cover the estimated antidumping duties. Importers also will have to post bonds or pay cash deposits for plastic bags from Indonesia and Vietnam as soon as those preliminary determinations are published in the Federal Register (which should occur within one week). In addition, U.S. Customs and Border Protection ("Customs") will suspend liquidation of those entries pending Commerce`s final determinations in the investigations. The Department has found high margins of dumping from each country, and the antidumping duties should restore fair competition to the U.S. market. This will give the US companies an opportunity to maintain US plants and US jobs instead of continuing to lose market share to unfairly priced imports. The Department will proceed to final investigations, which must be completed within 135 days, and the ITC will make a final determination within 180 days. If Commerce and the ITC each make affirmative final determinations, Commerce will impose antidumping duty orders in March 2010.