Posted on 03/05/2018 1:26:09 PM PST by Zhang Fei
U.S. steelmakers say Chinese steel companies are purposely avoiding U.S. import tariffs by routing their shipments through Vietnam – and they want the Commerce Department to take action to stop it.
U.S. Steel, ArcelorMittal, Nucor Corp., and AK Steel plan to file petitions today and Monday with Commerce, which will have 45 days to decide whether to take up the cases. If Commerce eventually finds that China is evading U.S. tariffs, it could expand tariffs on steel that originates in China but is shipped through Vietnam.
And as the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday, the American steel companies appear to have a pretty strong case:
"Independent trade data appear to lend credence to the steelmaker claims. In the first six months of 2016, shipments of steel from Vietnam to the U.S. increased to 312,329 tons, from 25,756 tons. Over the same period, Chinese exports of steel to Vietnam rose 46% to 6.3 million tons from 4.3 million tons, according to data firm Global Trade Information Services."
(Excerpt) Read more at americanmanufacturing.org ...
China is also sending Aluminum through Mexico.
Seems like something analogous to money laundering.
2016, eh? That would be Obama-era tariffs, right?
Wow. If you listened to the MSM echo-chamber you’d think Donald Trump was the only president who wants to charge tariffs on Chinese steel...
You cannot trust old or new enemies, they remain enemies.
It’s customs evasion. Many a GI in Korea has faced the music for selling duty free goods on the ROK economy.
...and aluminum via Mexico, etc., etc., etc.
Winning!
I heard even a year ago, that this is what is happening with some fish foods we eat. China and Vietnam are growing talapia and such in dung, and shipping thru Thailand or other area countries to avoid being caught.
If someone ships through a third country to avoid a tariff, that third country should of course be hit with the very same tariff.
Same happens with honey and garlic
Considering China’s history... in all the southern nations along the south China sea.....when some were populated up to and over 50% chinese.....China has always seen them as conduits for shipping their products. It’s “normal” from ‘their perspective’.
Any country ‘colluding’ with China to dump their steel to the US through their countries need to be slapped with tariffs too.
Not just through Vietnam but Canada and Mexico too.
Here’s the Canadian prime minister talking about Canada’s steel trade with the US;
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3636689/posts
Canada is the #1 importer of steel to the US. They are a conduit not a manufacturer.
China is sending pregnant women by the thousands to USA to give birth on US soil and become automatically US citizen. We are the only industrialized country which gives citizenship to tourists who drop a baby on our soil.
No more Tilapia for me!
growing talapia and such in dung,.....What is wrong with that? Talapia are natural shiteaters. Are now, always have been and I would NOT eat a bite.
Based on USTR numbers, I suspect Canada does make a lot of steel. Its Chinese imports amounted to about 600m tons. That would be a lot more if it were mainly a conduit.
https://www.trade.gov/steel/countries/pdfs/imports-Canada.pdf
I think the real problem with Chinese dumping is similar to an oil glut. There’s basically one global price for a given commodity, adjusted for grades and transportation costs. Global arbitrage means if China’s price is the cheapest, everyone demands the Chinese price. That’s not good for bottom lines if Chinese steel manufacturers are getting interest-free loans that never have to be paid back.
When I saw Vietnam on a list of steel exporters to the US, I definitely did a double take. Does Vietnam actually have a steel industry that produces enough to export?
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