Today, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross announced the affirmative preliminary determinations in the countervailing duty (CVD) investigations of silicon metal from Australia, Brazil and Kazakhstan, preliminarily finding that silicon metal exporters from these markets received countervailable subsidies of 16.23 percent, 3.69 to 52.07 percent, and 120 percent, respectively.

The Commerce Department will instruct U.S. Customs and Border Protection to collect cash deposits from importers of silicon metal from Australia, Brazil, and Kazakhstan based on these preliminary rates.

“We will continue to review all information related to this preliminary determination,” said Secretary Ross. “The Trump Administration remains vigilant against foreign actors that take advantage of American workers and businesses.”

In 2016, imports of silicon metal from Australia, Brazil, and Kazakhstan were valued at an estimated $33.9 million, $60.0 million, and $17.5 million, respectively.

The petitioner is Globe Specialty Metals, Inc. The company has production facilities located in Alabama, New York, Ohio, and West Virginia.

Enforcement of U.S. trade law is a prime focus of the Trump administration. From January 20 through August 8, Commerce initiated 64 antidumping and countervailing duty investigations – a 40 percent increase from the previous year. For the same time period in 2016, Commerce had initiated 40 antidumping and countervailing duty investigations.

Countervailing duty laws provide U.S. businesses and workers with an internationally accepted mechanism to seek relief from the harmful effects of unfair subsidization of imports into the United States. Commerce currently maintains 403 antidumping and countervailing duty orders which provide relief to American companies and industries impacted by unfair trade.

Unless the final determinations are postponed, Commerce is currently scheduled to announce its final CVD determinations on December 19.

If Commerce makes affirmative final determinations of subsidization and the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) makes affirmative final injury determinations, Commerce will issue CVD orders. If Commerce makes negative final determinations of subsidization or the ITC makes negative final determinations of injury, the investigations will be terminated and no orders will be issued.

Click HERE for a fact sheet on today’s decision.

The U.S. Department of Commerce’s Enforcement and Compliance unit within the International Trade Administration is responsible for vigorously enforcing U.S. trade laws and does so through an impartial, transparent process that abides by international law and is based solely on factual evidence.

Companies that receive unfair subsidies from their governments in the form of grants, loans, equity infusions, tax breaks and production inputs are subject to “countervailing duties” (CVD) aimed at directly countering those subsidies.

In fiscal year 2016, the United States collected $1.5 billion in duties on $14 billion of imported goods found to be underpriced or subsidized by foreign governments.