US dumps anti-dumping inquiry on Lankan rubber products

The United States has terminated the anti-dumping and countervailing duty investigations on imports of rubber bands from Sri Lanka on March 15, Sri Lanka’s Industry and Commerce Ministry said in a statement, yesterday.

The decision in this regard was taken at a vote held at the United States International Trade Commission (USITC). 

USITC Chairman Rhonda K. Schmidtlein, Vice Chairman David S. Johanson and Commissioners Irving A. Williamson and Meredith M. Broadbent made a finding of negligibility with respect to Sri Lanka but voted affirmative for investigations with respect to China and Thailand.

On February 21, 2018, the US announced the initiation of a new antidumping duty and countervailing duty (CVD) investigation “to determine whether the rubber bands from China, Sri Lanka and Thailand were being dumped in the United States or if the producers in China, Sri Lanka and Thailand are receiving 
unfair subsidies.”

The investigation was initiated after a US manufacturer of rubber bands filled an anti-dumping and countervailing duty petition at the US Department of Commerce (USDOC) and USITC alleging that the producers and exporters of rubber bands in Sri Lanka, Thailand and China are selling their products in the US market at less than normal value (dumping) and also, they have benefited from the subsidies provided by the respective governments. 

The petitioner further alleged that these imports cause material injury or threaten material injury to the domestic rubber industry of the US and requested the USDOC for an investigation aiming at imposition of anti-dumping/countervailing duty on imports as per the anti-dumping and countervailing duty laws of the US.

The Commerce Department of Sri Lanka in collaboration with the Attorney General’s Department and the affected Sri Lankan exporters made a number of submissions to the USDOC and USITC in the preliminary investigation stage rebutting the petitioner’s claims. 

The main argument from the Sri Lankan side was that Sri Lanka’s value and volume of export of rubber bands to the US fall below the minimum threshold to initiate an anti-dumping and countervailing duty investigation as specified in the World Trade Organisation agreements. 

Accordingly, the USITC in the preliminary based investigation has determined that the imports of the said products were negligible in value terms. As a result, the USDOC will now terminate the anti-dumping and countervailing duty investigation on Sri Lanka that had been initiated by the USITC.