Steel Dynamics, Inc. petitioned the Department of Commerce (DOC) and the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) to apply antidumping duties against imports of corrosion resistant flat rolled steel (CORE) from Australia, Brazil, Canada, Mexico, the Netherlands, South Africa, Taiwan, Turkey, UAE, and Vietnam, and countervailing duties against imports of CORE from Brazil, Canada, Mexico, and Vietnam. The company was joined by four other organizations in at least one or more of these cases.
“Between the first half of 2023 and the first half of 2024, imports of CORE from the 10 subject countries surged from less than 1.25 million tons to almost two million tons, a significant 57 percent increase. The surge of unfairly traded imports of CORE has had a significant negative impact on the domestic steel industry’s volume, prices, and profits, necessitating these cases,” said Barry T. Schneider, president and chief operating officer.
CORE steel is used in various market sectors, including in the production of automobiles, appliances, and in many construction applications. CORE products consist of hot rolled and cold rolled steel, which has been coated with zinc, and in some cases aluminum, and may be painted or have other coatings applied to make the product corrosion resistant. The present annual U.S. market demand for these products is over 20 million tons.
“Steel Dynamics has invested $3.7 billion in our steel divisions since June 2019, including investments in a new state-of-the-art 3.0-million-ton electric arc furnace flat rolled steel mill, four flat rolled galvanizing lines with Galvalume® capability, and three flat rolled paint lines. Corrosion-resistant flat rolled steel is a strategically important product to the domestic steel industry, and the restoration of fair trade is critically important,” said Christopher A. Graham, senior vice president, Flat Roll Steel Group.
Under the unfair trade statutes, the DOC must determine whether to initiate the requested investigations within 20 days, and the ITC must make a preliminary determination of injury within 45 days. Subject to initiation, the company expects preliminary determinations on subsidies later this year and on dumping early next year, though these determinations are subject to extension. Final rulings by both agencies should be completed by October 2025.