VASEP prepares to sue DOC for anti-dumping duties on Vietnamese shrimp

(VEN) - The US Department of Commerce (DOC) recently announced that Vietnamese shrimp companies will have to pay the highest tariffs ever for exporting shrimp to the US. Vietnam Economic News’ Nguyen Tien Dung spoke with Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) Deputy Chairman Nguyen Huu Dung about this issue.

What is your assessment of the anti-dumping tariffs that Vietnamese shrimp imports will be subjected to following the recent DOC announcement?

On September 19, 2014, the DOC officially announced its final decision on the anti-dumping duties on Vietnamese shrimp for the 8th period of review (POR8) from February 1, 2012, to January 31, 2013. According to this decision, the duties will be set at 4.98 percent for Minh Phu Seafood Corporation, 9.75 percent for the Soc Trang Seafood Joint Stock Company (STAPIMEX) and 6.37 percent for 30 other companies. The general duties for Vietnamese companies will be 25.76 percent. Compared to the duties in the 7th period of review (POR7), the tariffs in POR8 have drastically risen. Thirty of the 31 VASEP businesses met and agreed to protest against the DOC’s decision. They are working with lawyers to prepare a lawsuit. 

How will the anti-dumping tariffs affect Vietnamese shrimp exports to US?

The high tax rates will of course affect the competitiveness of Vietnamese shrimp products in the US market because higher taxes mean higher product prices and bigger financial burdens. This decision will also disrupt trade relations between Vietnamese businesses and their US partners. All these factors will directly affect US distributors, retailers and consumers.

What should seafood businesses and shrimp exporters do to protect themselves?

Although the DOC’s anti-dumping tax calculation has a common principle it has changed constantly, especially the application of reference data of other countries. As the US still considers Vietnam as a non-market economy, it uses reference data for calculating anti-dumping tariffs on Vietnamese products from a third country. This time the US used data dating back 10 years ago from Bangladesh. The first thing that Vietnamese seafood businesses should do is to work and discuss with their US partners to reach an understanding.

After initial shocks, Vietnamese businesses have gradually understood the rules and practices as well as how they should respond to the DOC’s decision. Immediately after the DOC announced its decision, we assembled to discuss how to file a lawsuit against the DOC’s decision. In the long run, Vietnam should expand and diversify markets to reduce the reliance on the US market. This is feasible as Russia is opening its markets and creating conditions for Vietnamese businesses to export products to its markets.

Vietnamese businesses need to also manage value chains and supply chains more strictly to develop better data systems in order to meet the annual requirements of the DOC, especially in the coming 9th period of review (POR9). With good preparations and responses to the DOC’s decisions, I believe that the DOC won’t apply tariffs higher than those current set in POR8./.

Source: ven.vn