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The Ministry of Commerce of Thailand is investigating and considering expanding anti-dumping measures on hot-rolled coils imported from China. This country's steel is said to be overrun in the Thai market, causing this country's domestic mills to struggle because of excess capacity and low efficiency.Thailand's Department of Foreign Trade may conclude the investigation by June 2024, after receiving an investigation request last year from Sahaviriya Steel, G Steel and GJ Steel, mills of hot-rolled coil, Thailand's biggest. These businesses are struggling because of widespread cheap Chinese steel, which affects the business of domestic steel mills.Information about the petition requesting Thailand's Department of Foreign Trade to investigate the case of 17 Chinese steel mills for alleged anti-dumping duty evasion. Accordingly, the alloys mixed into steel products by Chinese mills to avoid anti-dumping duties have caused quality control problems, leading to the dumping of steel products. According to Thailand's Department of Foreign Trade, Thai authorities found evidence of changing the composition of steel products and dumping by Chinese steel mills.China's hot-rolled steel coils are at risk of evading anti-dumping dutiesSoutheast Asia is China's leading steel export market, but China is currently facing widespread excess supply as the real estate and infrastructure sectors weaken. That forces China to boost exports, in which Vietnam, Thailand, and Indonesia are among China's main export markets; specifically, steel exports of all kinds increased by 39%. In 2023, Thailand will import 63% of its steel output, which will cause the business situation of domestic steel mills to decline, seriously affecting this country's steel industry.Cheap steel from China is the top choice for consumers. With abundant supply, Chinese steel mills offer Thai buyers cheaper prices than domestic steel mills. In 2023, the price of coated steel from China will be 39% lower than that of Thai products; Chinese steel coils will be sold at a 16% discount. Therefore, Thai steel manufacturing enterprises are facing a difficult situation due to declining revenue, which could affect the entire steel industry in this country.In 2017, Thailand applied anti-dumping measures to a series of imported steel products. This is also a wake-up call for Thai steel mills to focus on improving product quality and expanding sales channels to avoid price competition; otherwise, they will lose to high-priced imports. cheap despite government protections.However, in a public hearing before the DFT, steel importers from China in Thailand opposed the petition for an anti-dumping investigation of steel products from China. The reason that the Thailand steel industry lost its competitiveness comes from mistakes in investment decisions.China's hot-rolled coils affect domestic manufacturing enterprisesOpportunities for the Vietnam steel industryWith hot-rolled steel coils from China being investigated for anti-dumping by Thailand, a new opportunity has opened for the Vietnamese steel export market. With agility, grasping market needs, and boldness in business investment, more and more Vietnamese steel products are exported to Thailand, which is also one of Vietnam's main export markets in Southeast Asia.However, this is also a challenge for Vietnamese steel businesses, forcing businesses to be well prepared for trade defense measures. Therefore, Vietnamese businesses need to continue to improve production and business efficiency by strengthening market forecast analysis and organizing flexible production and business in accordance with market developments. In addition, the government has policies and solutions to create conditions for domestic businesses to promote exports.MRS Steel has provided you with information about Thailand's anti-dumping investigation of hot-rolled coils originating from China. However, the investigation has not ended yet. We will continuously update the latest information about the incident.

The Mexican government has announced anti-dumping duties on cold-rolled coils imported from Vietnam, with the anti-dumping duties ranging from 11.6% to 79%. These duties have been adjusted to lower levels compared to the initial rates proposed by the Mexican Ministry of Economy in September.Alongside robust growth in export activities, Vietnam's steel products are currently among the most frequently subjected to anti-dumping and countervailing investigations initiated by countries worldwide. Many steel products have faced lawsuits and have been subject to anti-dumping and countervailing duties in major markets such as the United States, the European Union, India, Australia, and more. Most recently, the Mexican government has decided to impose anti-dumping duties on cold-rolled coil products imported from Vietnam.It is known that Vietnam and Mexico are both members of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), so Vietnam's cold-rolled coil products enjoy a preferential tariff rate of 0% when exported to Mexico. For the groups of cold-rolled coil products currently under anti-dumping investigation, the total export turnover in 2020 was approximately 50 million USD. Among them, the HS code 7209 for cold-rolled iron and steel products accounted for nearly 80% of the production. This marked the second instance of Mexico initiating a trade remedy investigation against Vietnam, following an earlier anti-dumping investigation on coated steel products in 2021.On July 28, 2022, the Mexican Ministry of Economy initiated an anti-dumping investigation into cold-rolled coils imported from Vietnam based on complaints from the domestic industry. This action was taken in response to the observed unfair international trade practices affecting the country's enterprises. Under the guise of price discrimination, the cold-rolled coil products from Vietnam were deemed to have caused economic harm, leading to a decline in revenue for domestic steel manufacturers.After a period of investigation, the Mexican government has recently implemented anti-dumping duties on cold-rolled coil products imported from Vietnam. Starting from December 29, imported cold-rolled coil products from Vietnam had been subjected to anti-dumping duties imposed by the Mexican government. Specifically, the rates are 11.64% for products imported from Hoa Phat, 25.64% for those from Posco Vietnam and 79.24% for other manufacturers. In comparison, preliminary duties announced in September were 12.77% for Hoa Phat, 25.64% for Posco Vietnam and 81.06% for other manufacturers.The anti-dumping duties are applicable to items with the following HS codes: 7209.16.01, 7209.17.01, 7209.18.01, 7209.26.01, 7209.27.01, 7209.28.01, 7209.90.99, 7211.23.03, 7211.29.99, 7211.90.99, 7225.50.91, and 7226.92.06. Currently, steel products imported into Mexico also require a special import license issued by the Mexican government. In the context where the capabilities to respond to anti-dumping investigations by exporting businesses still have many shortcomings, fostering sustainable growth and exports and avoiding protectionist trade measures requires enterprises to adapt appropriately to the new circumstances. Faced with these challenges, Vietnamese businesses need to diversify risks, explore new export markets and enhance the value-added content of the domestic production chain. By doing so, the manufacturing sector can develop sustainably, minimizing the risk of investigations and applying anti-avoidance measures imposed by importing countries. Additionally, businesses should improve their traceability systems and accounting records to support anti-dumping investigations and facilitate the registration of self-certification mechanisms for the origin of raw materials in products subject to anti-avoidance investigations.

Malaysia has imposed definitive anti-dumping duties on Japanese cold-rolled steel coils after the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry (MITI) concluded its investigation earlier this year. At the same time, Malaysia also announced the end of trade defense measures on cold rolled steel imported from Vietnam.1. Malaysia: Anti-dumping investigation on Japanese cold rolled steelAccording to MITI's report, Malaysia's steel plate demand in 2022 reached 3.5 million tons, down 5.4% compared to the previous year. In the same year, import and export of steel plates both decreased by about 6-7% compared to 2021. Meanwhile, Malaysian cold-rolled steel prices remained highly competitive due to the massive import of cheap steel from abroad.This posed a significant threat to the development and business operations of domestic factories. Therefore, the Malaysian government is forced to take trade defense measures to protect the domestic market to a certain extent.On January 31, 2023, the authorities conducted an AD investigation on cold-rolled coils of iron or non-alloy steel with a width above 1300mm from Japan. The affected products are classified under the following HS code groups: 7209.15.00 00, 7209.16.10 00, 7209.16.90 00, 7209.17.10 00, 7209.17.90 00, 7209.18.99 00, 7209.25.00 00, 720 9.26. 10 00, 7209.26.90 00, 7209.27.10 00, 7209.27.90 00, 7209.28.90 00, 7209.90.90 00, 7211.23.20 00, 7211.23.90 00, 7211.29.2 0 00, 7211.29.90 00, 7211.90. 11 00, 7211.90.12 00, 7225.50.90 00, 7225.99.90 00, 7226.92.10 00 and 7226.92.90 00.2. Malaysia: Applying anti-dumping duty on Japanese cold rolling millsOn September 29, 2023, Malaysia imposed anti-dumping duties on Japanese cold-rolled coils of iron or non-alloy steel with thickness of 0.2-2.6mm and width of 700-1300m after completing the investigation. Accordingly, the Malaysian government has imposed a duty rate of 9.03% on Nippon Steel Corporation and 22.62% on other manufacturers, effective until September 28, 2028. However, due to the benefits of black plate and cold-rolled steel coils for the automobile, electronics industries are so great, Malaysia has excluded AD for these products.3. Malaysia: Ending anti-dumping measures on Vietnam's cold-rolled steelAccording to the Trade Defense Department, on March 21, 2019, MITI initiated an investigation of cold-rolled coils of iron or non-alloy steel with a width above 1300mm imported from Japan, Korea, China and Vietnam.By December 17, 2019, the government had applied definitive anti-dumping duty rates as follows: China 4.76% - 26.38% of the CIF value, Japan 26.39% of the CIF value, Korea 7.7% or 20.13% of the CIF value. This rate is effective for 5 years, from December 25, 2019 to December 24, 2024.In addition, other products from Vietnam and Korea are also under investigation including alloy/non-alloy cold rolled steel coils with thicknesses 0.2 - 2.6mm and widths 700 - 1300mm. The case has undergone many sunset reviews and received a decision to continue imposing anti-dumping duty, effective until October 8, 2026 at a rate of 0 - 21.64% for Korea and 7.42 - 33.7% for Vietnam. However, under the petition efforts of the Vietnamese government, MITI founded that Vietnam did not violate export conditions, the dumping margin was less than 2% of the export price. Therefore, Malaysia ended anti-dumping measures on the above products. In conclusion, Malaysian importers continue to enjoy preferential duty rates and cheap, quality steel sources from Vietnam.Vietnam is proud to be one of Malaysia's largest steel exporters with 653.7 million USD of iron and steel of all kinds and 48.1 million USD of steel products in 2022. Additionally, Vietnam and Malaysia are both members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA). There are many favorable opportunities for increased trade and two-way economic cooperation. If customers have any questions about the latest policies and procedures for importing Vietnamese steel, please contact MRS Steel via Email vanloc@mrssteel.com.vn for the most thoughtful support.