Imports of polyester staple fibre from Asia causing injury to US firms, says US ITC

The US International Trade Commission (ITC) has made a unanimous preliminary determination that unfairly-traded imports of fine denier polyester staple fibre (PSF) from China, India, Korea and Taiwan are causing injury to US producers. The preliminary injury determination means that the antidumping duty and countervailing duty cases will proceed.

The antidumping duty cases will proceed against China, India, Korea, and Taiwan, while China and India will also face countervailing duty cases.

Major US polyester fibre producers – Dak Americas LLC, Nan Ya Plastics Corporation, America, and Auriga Polymers Inc – filed petitions with the ITC and the US department of commerce on May 31, 2017 alleging that dumped imports of fine denier PSF from all four countries, and subsidised imports of fine denier PSF from China and India, are causing material injury to the domestic industry.

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Imports of fine denier PSF from the four subject countries increased by nearly 68 per cent between 2014 and 2016. The import surge was driven by low import prices that undersold the domestic industry, causing US producers to lose significant sales and profits.

"We are pleased with the results of the ITC's preliminary finding. This affirmative decision is a critical first step in providing relief to the domestic industry harmed by the flood of unfairly-traded imports of fine denier PSF from China, India, Korea, and Taiwan," said Paul Rosenthal, of Kelley Drye & Warren LLP, counsel to the petitioners.

Fine denier PSF, the product covered by the petition is a synthetic staple fibre of polyesters measuring less than 3.3 decitex (3 denier) in diameter. It is generally cut in lengths of less than five inches (127 mm) and is similar in appearance to cotton or wool. It is typically converted either to yarn for weaving or knitting into fabric or to a non-woven textile prior to the end-use application. Woven applications include the production of textiles such as clothing and bedding linens. Non-woven applications include the production of household and hygiene products such as cleaning wipes, baby wipes and diapers.

The petitioning companies Dak Americas LLC, Nan Ya Plastics Corporation, America, and Auriga Polymers Inc are represented by Kelley Drye & Warren LLP.